So I Came from the Sky
by Perfect-Wretched
Summary: I fall asleep and end up in the world of FMA, only to learn that it's not as wonderful as it seems... No OC/Canon whatsoever, a small bit, if any, of EdWin. Rated T for some possibly mild language.
1. It Begins

_**Disclaimer: I do not own FMA or its characters. **_

_**A/N: So I was trololing through fanfic, and noticed a few Mary Sue tests and whatnot, and found a piece that spoke of author-insert fanfics and how they're almost always terrible. Specifically, it was about when the author finds themselves in the story. However, there was a small notation about how such a tale could be saved, given the right skills.**_

_** Challenge. Accepted. **_

_**Here I go. **_

'~'

I felt my eyes droop, dismally slow, as I stared at the screen of my beloved laptop, scrolling through fanfiction after fanfiction of Fullmetal Alchemist. It had been hours since I'd begun my traversing through the site, but I refused to give up until I'd read every one. Good, bad, fantastic, and terrible; all danced by my eyes until I wasn't sure whether I was actually reading anymore or absorbing it through some sort of strange powers located in my brain. Or maybe I was just steadily going insane. Whichever.

Some part of my conscience, probably the smart one, was screaming at me to close the lid and go to sleep. It spoke of 'sense' and 'good judgment' and other such nonsense, reminding me that I had a busy day of Monday to tackle in the morning.

I refused, fiercely believing that I could do this, and forgetting why on earth I'd attempted it to begin with. Time faded, leaving me in some sort of strange zone where I was aware of nothing. I'm not sure what was really happening, since the clock on the wall had seemed to become mind-numbingly loud, yet I saw no such device and I couldn't move from my hunched over position. I don't think my hands had retained their feeling for a long while, and I was sure that my feet had gone numb.

Suddenly, I felt a strange sensation on my cheek, like warm plastic.

To my dismay, I found that my eyes were closed, and my head was now on the keyboard of my laptop, the keys no doubt making mazes on my face that I would laugh at later. Silently, I cursed my human body and began the attempt to lift my head, when I realized that I no longer had any such control. Like a light being turned off with the flick of a switch, I was promptly asleep.

'~'

I awoke in stages, as I usually do.

First came the traditional cursing at the sun and bemoaning its existence. Next, of course, was the dim realization that it was morning and now was the time that I must awaken. Third, the realization that I would do no such thing unless screaming howler monkeys dragged me from my slumber whilst dancing the Macarena and playing the banjo.

After that, I would feel the effects of being truly awake in a blur; threatening myself, reminding myself of things I must do today, peeling an unforgiving cat who apparently wants breakfast off of my person, blearily hitting the 'off' button on the alarm clock, and sliding my pathetic self off the bed and down to the kitchen to have some coffee.

This morning, however, was the strangest I'd ever experienced. The sun, instead of streaming through a small space my cat had made in the curtains, was now all around me, beating its rays into my eyelids like a schoolyard bully with a deep vendetta complex. Next, instead of the usual yowling of the devil in feline form, I heard what appeared to be people chatting and cars honking. Instead of my soft bed, covered in blankets thrown about by my crazy sleep-dance, I felt stone, warmed by the sun.

Instantly, I was awake, sitting straight up and wrenching open my eyes, who did not want to cooperate at the time. At first, everything was blurry.

There might've been a few people milling about, though I couldn't tell for sure, and I do believe I spotted a few oversized blobs of black that could have been cars. I wondered about this for a moment, why, indeed, I couldn't see, until I realized I was not wearing my glasses. I felt around dazedly for them, my mind focusing its energy from trying to understand my current position to something more familiar.

As I slid my glasses on and looked up, it was as though I were struck by lightning.

I _knew _this place.

A busy street in front of me, cars driving past lazily and people walking to and fro, wearing clothes slightly outdated in my opinion. Buildings towered above me, reaching towards a sky that was bright and yet so vaguely different from the one I knew. Vendors shouted their wares, and those who walked past me gave me a pitying look or else barely a glance.

I was agog. I _knew _this place. It was so familiar and yet…

…Central.

_Central. _

I had to place my hand over my mouth to restrain the scream that threatened to tear from my throat. These streets, those cars, the people walking by who I now noticed were appallingly flawless. It made sense, now. Crazy sense that couldn't possibly be true in a million years, perhaps. But sense.

My logical mind boggled with the pure _idea. _A story, that's all this was, a story, filled with fictional characters and fictional places who engaged in fictional plot devices that eventually ended with something akin to "and they lived happily ever after".

A story.

And I was now smack in the middle of it.

'~'

_**A/N: YES, putting an author's note here IS necessary, because you see, I wrote that all without so much as a pre-draft. Yup. That's me. So review, the other thing, whatever. **_

_**And yes, that is how I, in fact, wake up. It's an art form, I assure you. **_


	2. Edward Elric

_*~Edward Elric~*_

_**A/N: Just so you know, we are now in Ed's point of view. In case you were confused.**_

"I'm not lost," I mumbled to Al for the umpteenth time. He hadn't shut up since I'd decided to take the lead in which way we went. I was right, of course, but I didn't want to rub it in his face. Too hard. "This is Central we're talking about; there's no way_ I'd_ be lost."

"Alright, brother, if you say so," Al replied, his voice echoing inside his armored body. "I still think we should have taken a left at the park."

"Shut up," I blew a stray strand of hair out of my eyes, contemplating whether he might be right after all. "I know we should go this way, because-.."

I stopped, feeling that creepy feeling you get when someone's staring at you. Wouldn't be the first time, and probably won't be the last that I've felt that.

My eyes slid over to meet a pair of eyes belonging to a girl who was sitting on the ground. She was weird, though once I thought about that more in depth, I couldn't put my finger on why. She looked normal enough, I guess, with gold-rimmed glasses and long blonde hair pulled into a ponytail. Her eyes were either hazel or brown, I think. Not too pretty, but not ugly, either.

What might have been strange were her clothes, though. Pants of a weird material, and a t-shirt with wording that declared something along the lines of a weird dog-thing being friends with a squirrel.

Her eyes were wide and staring, as if she knew me from a long time ago or something. I'm pretty sure I've never seen her before, but hey, I've met a lot of people.

"Uh…Hello?"

I bent down and waved my hand over her face, trying to see if I could get any sort of reaction. And I did, but not one I was expecting. She leaned back further, her eyes widening until I was almost afraid they would pop.

"I was right." She whispered. She began mumbling under her breath, the first knuckle of her pointer finger on her right hand coming up to touch her lip. Probably an odd habit she'd picked up somewhere, I guessed.

"Right about what?" Al asked, sounding worried. "Are you okay, miss?"

She looked up, quick enough to startle me. I have to admit, she looked pretty crazy.

"Alphonse," she demanded. "Alphonse Elric and Edward Elric. Right?"

"Yeah…that's us," I replied cautiously, wondering if there was an asylum nearby that was missing a patient. "Who're you?"

She gaped at me, as though the question had caught her by surprise. "I'm…" she hesitated for a moment. "My name is Peyton."

"Peyton, huh?" I repeated, getting a nod for affirmation. "Well, I guess you already know who I am. So where are you from?"

Geez, that staring thing was getting creepy as hell. It was like she had to pause for a moment so her brain could boot back up; just like and old, crappy computer.

"The sky." She mumbled, barely audible.

Despite myself, I felt my eyebrow raise slightly. I know it's mean to make fun of people, but…she was crazy. I decided at that moment that maybe being around her wasn't so smart, and maybe we should get out of there. ASAP.

"Cool, nice meeting you, well, look at the time, gotta go!" I gave her a huge, reassuring smile, straightened and started walking quickly away, motioning for Al to follow.

"Brother!" he hissed disapprovingly, catching up to me with his armor clanking in the background noise.

"C'mon, Al," I replied under my breath, "She's obviously a loon. If it makes you feel better, we'll go and get the authorities to pick her up."

"H-Hey! Hey wait!" I heard the girl calling after us and looked over my shoulder to see her standing up and beginning to run.

"Dammit, Al, run!"

I was sure of it now; definitely crazy, possibly dangerous. I knew Central was full of weirdoes, but I didn't figure it was this bad. I'd have to have a chat with Mustang. As me and my brother raced down the streets, going through alleyways and jumping over stuff to try and get away from a crazy girl, it kinda struck me as funny. I mean, who can honestly say they've done that before? Guess we're just lucky.

_**A/N: This. Took me. TOO LONG. To write. It's hard to write as Ed. *dramatic sigh* I probably failed at it, too. JOY. Let me know, guys.**_


	3. Envy

_**A/N: Let us assume that when there is no heading, it is back to my point of view. **_

My head was brimming with all sorts of foul language and curses, some in other languages, as I tried to catch up to the vanishing alchemist. _Dammit!_ The minute he'd begun talking to me, my brain had fried. Poof! Gone! Every possible kind of intelligent thought, vanished in an instant. And now? Now I was chasing a blond shorty and a walking pile of armor through a town that was _not _supposed to exist.

I berated myself over and over, attempting to keep my harshening breaths and the painful thudding in my chest from overriding my desperate need for answers. I'd seen the episode in Brotherhood where Ed had transmuted himself, Ling, and Envy out to the real world; maybe he could do the same for me? That, at least, was my initial reasoning.

_But first,_ my conscience reminded me venomously, _you've gotta catch someone with fifteen years of training versus your hardly-get-up-to-grab-the-remote self through sheer willpower. Nice job._ It added a sarcastic kind of clap to the mix, just to infuriate me further.

Sometimes, I swear, she was like a grossly overweight cat squatting on my head; complaining about the current situation but not actually doing anything to fix it. I didn't bother to even try to shoot back a witty, snappy comment this time. The debate would go on for far too long, and I didn't have time-

Suddenly, my legs threw up their hypothetical hands and said "I'm done!". As if in slow motion, I saw one foot hit a loose rock and the ground start to loom up closer, while my quarry got further away. _Dammit!_ was now becoming the word of the day while I chanted it inside my head, more furious for falling over than I was hurt.

The breath whooshed out of me quickly, and I was reminded of how, though it wasn't supposed to be real, the ground could apparently still hurt. Fantastic. I'll add that to my checklist of things I hate about anime. Laying there for a moment after the initial impact, I found myself cursing existence itself. Later, I decided mutinously, I would have a talk with someone. Not sure who, but you can bet they'll regret it. _If _I could somehow manage to get back to my world.

With no small amount of renewed hatred at the world in general, I peeled myself off the stone, wincing at a cut in my knee and a hearty scrape on my left hand that felt like I'd stuck it into a fire. The Elric brothers? Gone. The goody-two-shoes inside me chose that moment to whisper something along the lines of 'at least you're still okay'. She received a middle finger from my conscience and was promptly shut up for the remainder of the day.

I sat down on the ground, glaring at the alleyway in front of me. The two had jumped the fence in between the stucco buildings and disappeared around the corner, leaving me to sit here in the middle of an even worse mess than I was before. _So now what?_

An old lady walked by, and stopped next to me, giving me what looked to be an ancient evil eye. She wore a faded shawl that was either pink, red, or maybe purple at one point, and an equally faded dress that fell to her withered old feet encased in sandals. Her hair was grey, that much I could tell, and I think her eyes might have been green.

"Why were you chasing those two boys?" she asked me, in a forceful way that surprised me in its intensity. She sounded like an old lady should, rusty and decrepit, but…there was a strange type of youth in her features and the way she walked. Not to mention the glare she'd delivered.

"I...Uh…wanted to ask them something." _Very nice, hero. Show her how intelligent you are, why don't you? _My conscience didn't want to shut up. I suppose it was rather self-righteous; seeing as how it may have been right about the whole 'go to bed' thing after all.

"Ask them what?" She pressed impatiently. Geez, this lady liked to pry.

"I'm sorry," I said, standing up shakily and brushing myself off, frowning at my shoes. "I don't remember it being your business."

I regretted it the moment it left my mouth. Okay, so I was having a rough time, but that didn't mean I needed to be so nasty to other people. Even if they didn't really exist and I'd probably never see them again.

"I'm sorry." I said again, rubbing the back of my neck ashamedly. "I wanted to see if they could help me get to where I'm going. I'm having a bad day. I didn't mean to snap at you."

She waved her hand dismissively. "Alright." With that, she began walking away with that weird kind of grace that she had. Must be the anime, part of me reasoned. It didn't have to be lifelike.

The other part was agape at her reaction. So she wanted to know about what I was saying to the Elrics but didn't care about the rest of it? And she didn't so much as blink when I insulted her like that. A little red flag popped up in my mind, something about this lady that I'd seen before, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

As I stared at her, trying to figure it out, the wind kicked up one of those convenient gusts that happens a lot in these places. The kind that makes the main character's hair fly dramatically backwards while they're speaking. The old lady was talking to herself, apparently. More like muttering, but it had the same effect. A wisp of a sentence flew my way, and I felt as though the world had pulled the rug out from under my feet.

"Dammit," she cursed under her breath. "That bitch scared off the Elric brats. Now I'm going to have to find them. Again."

Her voice was not that of an old lady anymore. It was scratchy, and strange in a sort of throaty way. And it was undeniably Envy's.

"Envy!" I looked around in shock to see who else had recognized him through his disguise, but that was before I realized that I was the idiot who'd spoken. And now I saw that he was looking straight at me, his old-lady head craned over his shoulder.

"Who are you?" he asked in her voice, cold, icy anger bordering on his tone, like the way you can feel electricity in the air right before a bad storm.

"No one!" I managed to squeak, feeling a wave of terror wash over me. "No one at all! Don't mind me! I'll just be-"

I'd begun to walk slowly backwards, thinking that if I could just get far enough away, I might be able to hide. Rule number one, I'd learned from watching this insane show, was to not attract attention; particularly that of the vengeful homunculi.

I'm not really sure what happened next. Surely, I'd moved somehow, or he had, or something, but all that my mind really registered was a blur of motion and the high-pitched squeal not unlike a mouse's last words. Now, I was in a dark alleyway with my back against the wall and a hand against my throat. And there he was.

Red lighting crackled its way down his body, which was now the one he claimed as his 'cute' form. Muscled arms and legs bared by black fabric and topped with spiked forest-green hair that sprouted from the top of his head and was often likened to a palm tree. Envy, the jealous.

I would've laughed at his expression, were I safely on my couch and not currently in the grasp of one of his aforementioned black fabric-covered hands. He was markedly _pissed _and I could guess the reason for it.

"Tell me who you are or die," he hissed, his expression dead-serious. Yeah. I did that on purpose. Funny how I can crack jokes on this limited air supply, right? Not really. It was odd, being on the other side of the story. I'd always cheer for Envy, him being my favorite character, and I'd always thought it would be like heaven if I'd get to meet him.

Stupid fangirl fantasies. No, what I felt now was not the fuzzy, warm, tingly feeling of beginning love, but pure, ice-cold fear. It trickled down from my spine and pooled itself in my feet, turning every muscle on the way into jelly. I didn't see an interesting-looking guy with an awesome attitude. I didn't feel like the princess being swept off her feet. He was a mass of anger; of pure, unbridled power, and of unimaginable cruelty. What was I? A simple mouse who'd wandered into the wrong hands.

Honestly, I felt like I was about to be eaten.

"My name's Peyton," I managed to croak, clutching pathetically at his hand. Interestingly enough, I don't think my feet were touching the ground. At the time, I was losing the feeling in most of my body, though, so I couldn't be sure. "I came from another world. I know about you, about everything."

"Peyton?" he repeated. "Not a sacrifice. And you know everything?" That nasty grin that I used to nearly swoon over spilled across his face, now bringing a fresh wave of terror washing over me. "That makes you a liability."

My chest hurt, was the first thought that sprang to mind. The next was the feeling that it didn't just _hurt, _it had a brand spanking new gaping wound in the front, probably caused by the other hand that he'd, somewhere along the line, turned into a spike and was now dripping blood, and 'hurt' didn't even cover it.

I couldn't react much as he dropped me to the floor, the world tilting crazily as my head banged against the pavement, adding to the torrent of pain that flooded my mind. I coughed, feeling warm, metallic liquid spill out of my mouth and onto the concrete, which was now turning a lovely shade of red. There weren't any real thoughts running around in my mind, just agony that rushed up through me, fading my vision and turning it the same color as the floor was now.

"Sorry I couldn't chat with you," he snickered at my limp body, pushing me over daintily with his foot. "I've got other things to do." With that, he turned back into the old lady and walked out of the shadows quickly, so no one would notice the dead body in the alley.

My eyes started being swallowed by blackness, and I could hear what sounded like a heartbeat, slowly, slowly, slowly…stopping. My last thought was the clichéd, "Is this…really how it ends?..."

Then the blackness claimed me entirely, and I stopped thinking at all.

_**A/N: I love writing death scenes. Although this one was admittedly not my best. *sad face* **_

_**P.S. This is not how it ends. **_

_**P.P.S. Yes, I'm going to employ a time-honored tradition among fanfiction writers:**_

_**The Bringer-Back-to-Lifer.**_

_**I'll make it as painful as possible. **_


	4. William Bentham

*~William Bentham~*

It was a new day at my new job as a state alchemist. I gotta say, the admission test was hard, but the people in the force are harder. Not to say that they aren't good at what they do, of course. As soon as I was given the OK, everything else passed by in a blur. I was assigned a codename and stationed right here in Central, then told to come into work early the next morning.

At least, I told myself, it's in Central. I've got family here, generations of 'em. Mother, Father, Aunts, Uncles, Grandma, Grandpa; just about everyone lives here. So I'm content. Plus, the money is good enough to pay for things that I wouldn't be able to afford otherwise, like a brand-new house. A house for me and the girl of my dreams, Mary. We wouldn't have to worry about money now, and as soon as we're all set, I plan on marrying her.

I shook my head to try and clear it of those kinds of daydreamy, warm, fuzzy thoughts as I pulled on my uniform and combed my hair into regulation. First day on the job as a state alchemist; can't be late, and certainly can't afford thoughts that'll distract me.

"Make an appearance, Bentham," I told the 'me' in the mirror sternly, "That's the best you can do right now."

Few minutes more, and out the door I went, climbing into my old car and heading down to my post. It was a fairly quiet part of northwestern Central, a small neighborhood with hardly a complaint. The people there were nice, and I was relieved that I wouldn't have one of the hard jobs right off the bat, like the Ishvalan extermination.

As soon as I arrived, I could tell something was off. What was with the crowd? There were bunches of concerned citizens crowding around an alleyway, their faces masks of horror and worry. I pulled up carefully and stepped out, easily finding my next in command.

"Sir!" I said, saluting him, "Bentham, reporting for duty."

He returned it tiredly, replying, "At ease, soldier."

I relaxed slightly, then nodded towards the crowd. "If I may ask, sir, what's going on here?"

Lieutenant Kapp sighed and shook his head, running a hand through his graying hair.

"We're not really sure. Some think it might be a murder, others say it was a burglary gone wrong…" He peered at me nearsightedly, then walked closer and put an arm around my shoulders, turning me away from the sight. "Look," he breathed quietly, "You're a newbie, right, Bernard?"

"Ah, Bentham, sir," I corrected politely, trying to see past him, "And yes, sir."

"You don't need to be seeing things like this. Go home, take the day off. You don't need to be ruined so early in the game." He said, his tone serious and his eyes searching mine for compliance.

I stood up straighter, my arms at my sides stiffly. "With all due respect, sir, I can't shy away from my duties, especially on the first day. If I'm going to be in the military, I will see some disturbing things, it's only a matter of time and it doesn't matter if I see them now or later."

He watched me for a moment, then nodded solemnly and turned back around, releasing my shoulders from his grip.

"Then brace yourself, soldier," he said, waving his arm to indicate that I should see it for myself.

As I stepped forward, the first thing I noticed was the blood. There was tons of the stuff, pooling around on the ground in the alley and leaving a red smear on the wall of the building on the right. The smell, metallic and sharp, pierced my nose and I had to resist the urge to grimace and pull my shirt up over my nose. I knew I was being tested, that I had to stand tall and take it.

The next thing I saw was a girl, lying in the middle of the pool, facedown and with her head inclined towards me slightly, as though she'd watched her attacker run away from the scene. At first, I was filled with the irrational fear that it might be Mary, but was relieved when I realized that her hair was straight and blonde, not the curly red mane of my beloved.

I bent down near the poor sight, saddened by the fact that she was so young. Probably only fifteen, maybe, a scant six years from my own age. Way too young to have her life ended so quickly and brutally.

"What happened to you?" I mumbled to the corpse. I reached over to brush a stray strand of hair out of her glazed eyes. "What did you see?"

Suddenly, I felt as though my gut was gripped by an icy hand as her eyes, supposed to be dead and lifeless, blinked and then focused on me.

I scrambled upwards, trying to get away from the not-dead girl, and I think I might have said a few curses as I did so. Kapp was saying something to me, his hand on my shoulder, but none of it registered. My eyes were locked on the girl's, trying to tell myself that it was an illusion, that none of it was real, maybe I didn't get enough sleep last night, and that the dead couldn't come back.

But even as I told myself all of that, the girl blinked again and moved her arms underneath her, pushing herself up to a sitting position, her expression shocked. From behind my ear, I could hear the unmistakable sound of someone loading a gun.

"Get up, soldier!" Kapp's voice came through my fog of thoughts, "She might be the murderer!"

I fumbled for my gun and managed to stand up shakily. There was no way. She couldn't be alive….but she couldn't have been dead either, could she have? She was cold and she wasn't breathing not two minutes ago. How could she possibly be up? Especially if that blood was hers. No one could survive that much blood loss.

"I…I…." she whispered, her voice hoarse and her eyes wide and disbelieving. She held her bloodstained hands up to her face as if she didn't think they should be there. "I'm alive? Why-"

"Get down on the ground!" Kapp barked. "You're coming into custody for speculation of assault or murder! Come quietly and everything will be alright."

It was as if she hadn't heard him. "Envy." She murmured. "He-but…but I…"

She blinked a few times, then looked up at us. She sat there for what seemed like forever, staring at us. She must've seen our uniforms and recognized them, because she stood up shakily, favoring her left leg, which had been twisted underneath her. She held up her hands in a signal of surrender and focused on Kapp.

"I want to speak to Colonel Mustang," she said clearly. "And I want to speak to him now."

"You'll do no such thing until we ask you a few questions, young lady." Kapp replied, his face hardened and his gun trained on her. "Who's blood is that?"

She shrugged, her hands still up. She was drenched in it, and made for quite a gruesome sight, with her hair plastered to her face and her clothes stained. "Mine, I guess. I was dead just a minute ago."

"Tell the truth!" Kapp thundered.

"That is the truth!" she huffed, annoyed. "Everyone here thinks I'm crazy. Well, you know what? I don't care anymore. I need to go see Roy and maybe talk him into getting Ed to transmute me back to my world."

"Ed?" I found myself asking, forgetting my place as backup for Kapp. I wasn't really supposed to be talking at all. "You mean Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist?"

She snorted. "Duh. Who else would I be talking about? I doubt there's another 'Ed' in this entire universe."

Well, now. That was…weird. Come to think of it, she was certainly different. Maybe it was the way she carried herself, or the clothes she was wearing, but she didn't look like she belonged here. And what was that about no other 'Ed's? Of course there were other people named Ed. Edward was a very popular name nowadays. None came to mind, but I was sure there were others. Didn't she say something about 'her world', too? I was curious, but still a bit wary of her, since she was supposed to be dead, and I'd heard too many stories about zombies and such.

"Bentham," Kapp snapped sharply.

"Sir?"

"Take her into custody. Don't let her out of your sight." He commanded.

"Yes, sir." I turned to the girl and jerked my head over to my car. "This way, miss."

"Can I have a bath first, at least?" she asked, grimacing at the blood on her arms as she walked towards the car. She didn't even glance at the gun I had pointed at her, but instead was worried about having a bath? "This is disgusting."

I opened the back door for her, and then let myself into the driver's seat. _William Bentham,_ I thought to myself, _first day on the job and you're already working with crazies. Congratulations, and welcome to the military._

_**A/N: I really like William. I mean, he's another OC, but he's someone that you wouldn't think of to be in the FMA world. He's just your average joe, trying to save up enough money to make his girl happy. He's normal enough to just blend into the story, as though he was there all along, but just never was introduced. **_


	5. Vroom, Vroom

It was really beyond disgusting, being covered in my own blood which was now drying. I never thought I'd have to say something like that, but there you have it. I made a face at the man behind the wheel and picked at a spot on my arm. At the moment, I was basically shoving everything to the back of my head and focusing on what was here and now. Otherwise, I don't think I'd be able to function correctly. After all, I'd just die-Nope. Not going to think of it.

For a few minutes, I looked out the window, then quickly decided that the view was the same, stucco buildings and the streets, a few people walking here and there, and flopped back in the seat dramatically, wrinkling my nose at the smell the blood gave off and almost sighing, but thinking twice about it. I might inhale some of it.

"Seriously. Can I have a bath?" I asked, "This is awful."

The young man behind the wheel, who couldn't possibly be very much older than me, maybe 20 or so, shook his head. "I'm sorry, miss," he replied quietly. "I don't think I ought to. You're a suspect, you know."

"Yes, yes, a suspect for my own murder, I was there." I peered at the back of his head, which was a dark mahogany color with a few lighter streaks from the sun and continued. "Who are you again? You can't be canon or else I'd remember you."

"Begging your pardon, miss. I'm William Bentham."

William? William Bentham? I racked my brains, but there was no way that there was such a person, at least, his name was never mentioned in the anime. Add that to his almost-red-brown colored hair and storm-at-sea-blue-green-gray eyes, his height, build, and general appearance, and I was sure of it. He wasn't supposed to exist, unless…unless…

Unless, maybe, he was just one of those characters that existed in the background, and was never really involved with the main story?

I stared at him suspiciously for a moment more before speaking again. "Peyton."

"Mm? What was that?"

"My name. It's Peyton. Not 'miss'." I repeated somewhat grouchily. It wasn't his fault. I mean, why would he know my name in the first place? But being referred to by such an ambiguous name really got to me. It always got on my nerves when I was younger and had my bangs died royal blue. The substitute teachers always just called me 'blue-haired girl'. I guess it just stuck with me.

He chuckled, the sound warm and friendly. "Sorry, mi-ah, Peyton. I was raised right and proper, you know. When meeting someone you don't know, be polite. Otherwise, be polite."

It was strange, but I felt sorry for William. I got the feeling that I would've liked him as canon. Then again, a lot of the side canon characters got brutally murdered somewhere along the line. On second thought, I could always just get to know him now, bypassing the fact that he was in the military, after all, and he may not live…

"So, William," I began, shoving the end of that thought to the back of my head, "Why are you here? Tell me your life story."

"Well," he said, taken a little aback, but pleased that I was interested, "I was raised in a small town just north of New Optain called Tinam. I was an only child, and something of a miracle. You see, my mother was told that she would never have children, and that to try might kill her. But try she did anyway, and when I came out, nice and healthy, she was so relieved, she called the doctor and told him that his services weren't required anymore. We switched to a different doctor, then." he chuckled a little more, reminding me that I was in a car, and not drifting off with his soft, warm voice to his hometown.

I guess he was just one of those people who could really tell stories.

"When I was about twelve, I started my first job delivering papers, and that's when I met her."

"Her?"

He nodded. "Marianne Elizabeth Beyer. It was love at first sight. I fell off my bike, and she invited me inside to get patched up. From that moment on, I knew I would marry her one day. That's why I'm in the military," he said proudly.

"For the money?" I guessed.

"Of course. I have to make money fast. She…Mary is sick." His tone became sad, and his shoulders went slightly limp. My heart ached for him, and I was surprised to find myself wanting to comfort him. In such a short time, with a tiny bit of a conversation, I'd been sucked in. Not good.

"She is? That's terrible," I heard myself say before I could stop. I was getting too caught up in this, now, and I was afraid that I'd go back to my own world and then be upset because William wouldn't be in the anime anywhere. Because I know myself. And that is something that I would do. _Well, maybe I could write him a story or something…_part of me thought, somewhat reproachfully.

"Yes. The doctors aren't sure what's wrong with her, but it has something to do with her heart. It doesn't beat right, I think. Anyway, she has to stay in bed and she can't do a lot of things. So I go out to buy her and her family food once in a while. One day, I'll bring her a ring. I promised." He said firmly.

I was shocked by his conviction. It was like he'd spent his entire life thinking about this girl. Come to think about it, he probably did. But it was his loyalty that really got me. He just radiated this feeling that he would travel to the ends of the earth for her. And it was really sweet. 'Course that didn't help my fear that I would get too attached to the guy.

"Oh. Okay." I slunk back into my seat and stared out the window some more. What could you possibly say to something like that? Such a proposal of love and determination. It made me feel like a horrible person for not being so caring.

I caught my reflection in the window, to try and read the expression off my own face, but it was strange. It was a lot different from the face I usually saw. My face was…anime. And I liked it. The acne that bordered on the side of my forehead and took forever to fight back was gone. Any irregularities in my complexion or otherwise were just completely gone. Without it, I actually looked pretty. But it was still weird to find yourself anime-ized like that.

Before I could overthink it some more, William had stopped the car and opened the door for me, sending my reflection swinging away. I sighed and got up, stepping out of the car to behold an impressive-looking building. It had double staircases that traveled up the sides and disappeared into the dark red brick of the building itself. On the front hung the green emblem of Amestris's military.

It was cool to be here in one of my favorite anime. The thought popped up in my head, unbidden, as I walked towards the building. I missed my home already. I missed being just me. I missed... My nose wrinkled again. _I miss not being murdered by a cross-dressing palm tree, _I thought venomously, half hoping that Envy could feel the daggers in my thoughts.

Which reminded me of another unpleasant detail that this whole ordeal threw into sharp definition. What would happen if Envy saw me alive? The thought sent a chill down my spine, since I had no idea what would actually happen. Knowing it wouldn't have been as bad, as you can always tell yourself that it's not as horrible as whatever you'd dreamed up. But I had no idea, and that made it terrifying.

What would happen if Envy caught me, again?

_Then, I just won't let him catch me,_ I thought determinedly, walking into the archway with William. He spoke to one of the guards, who nodded and opened the door. William turned to me and smiled gently.

"Would you like me to go with you?" he asked. "I have time. And I could always help you if you get lost in here."

"Yes, please," I replied, shakily. I didn't want to think of whatever techniques the military employed when questioning murderers, but having William there would make me feel safer. At least, for the time being.

He nodded once, solemnly, and offered me his arm. I took it, crossing my blood-smeared arm over his blue-sleeved one, and together, we walked into the gaping maw of the brick building.

_**A/N: I really do love William. A bit too much, maybe, but still. And his story is kind've Gary-Stu-ish, what with the adorable/sad thing, but he's not an orphan, which is a bonus, and his girl isn't dead yet. He plans on making her better with his loove~**_


	6. A Solution? Or a Fatal Misstep?

_**A/N: I really hate having to use first person with my main OC AGAIN, but I just couldn't see it happening with anyone else. The next chapter is going to be someone else, though, in a pathetic attempt to soothe the savage beast that is my OCD method of thinking.**_

The questioning had been going on for hours. William had checked his watch for me quite a few times, and based on that, it'd only been two hours. I felt that two days would be more appropriate, since that's what it felt like, but I figured that my being dramatic wouldn't help anything. Then again, neither did the questions nor the question-ers. Both were almost unbearably boring.

"Did you murder anyone?" "No." "Did you see anyone get murdered?" "Yes." "Who?" "Me." "Whose blood is that?" "Mine." "Did you murder anyone?"

During one of the breaks they allowed me, where I could go into a common room, maybe get a drink of water, and chat with William, I flopped down on the sagging and well-loved couch and mumbled uncouth phrases into one of the cushions.

This wasn't getting anywhere, and I knew that if I ever wanted to get back to my own world, I had to first get out of this mess. But how? I just had to think for a little while, which seemed almost impossible since the people who ran this place were currently glaring at me from underneath their pompous asshats.

"If I might make a suggestion, miss?" William said softly, sitting down next to me. I managed to peel my face off the comfortable couch and sit up to look at him tiredly. My plain hazel eyes met his stormy seas and I felt a pang of jealousy. I got that he was anime, but why did he have to be so pretty? It wasn't fair, really.

"Go ahead, William," I replied, dismissing my internal conversation, leaning back and crossing my arms, and keeping my eyes on him.

"Didn't you say that you needed to see Colonel Mustang?"

I blinked a few times and my eyes widened. I'd forgotten all about him. Maybe….Maybe I had a chance, after all. In fact, I think I had a solution to this whole mess. A trump card, even.

"Why don't you just tell them the nature of your request to visit him? I'm sure if they knew that you were with him, then they would be more lenient at least." He finished, smiling at me both apologetically and hopeful that he'd helped somewhat.

"William," I said, "Thank you." It wasn't quite what I had in mind, though I did get that he was just trying to help. His old-time thinking forbade him from leaving a female in distress without at least trying.

He brightened and stood. "Glad to be of assistance, Miss Peyton." He nodded at me once, encouragingly, as one of the thugs in the uniforms came towards me and grabbed my arm.

"Time's up," he said gruffly. I could tell that he'd had something unpleasant for lunch from the way that his mustache reeked of some unholy smell. It was all I could do to keep from gagging and fainting.

_Now, _I thought, _with this idea that I have, the future is a gamble. It'll either work one way, fail another, or…_

_ Or I'll probably be turned into a crisp. _The last thought resounded grimly in my mind and I was half-dragged back to the questioning room.

"So let's start again, shall we?" The question-er began with his usual statement, just as the disgusting-mustached goon closed the door behind me with a resounding thud. I sat down in the uncomfortable metal chair that was missing half an inch from one of the legs, so that it would be even more uncomfortable, and promptly turned my gaze to the table.

I wasn't listening to the person in front of me. Instead, I was tuning into my thoughts, which buzzed around with this new idea, rolling it around like a kid with a jawbreaker. On one hand, this plan could land me out of here and provide me with a new way to get to Ed and maybe back to my world. On the other, I might really piss off some people, and I'm not sure what the regulations for me coming back to life were. Maybe I was like a vampire? Would you have to burn me at the stake? Wait, that's a witch-

"I asked you a question, punk!" the man's voice became loud enough to cut through my thoughts and self-musings. I flicked my eyes upward to acknowledge him, and was surprised and somewhat frightened by the fact that his face had turned a rather interesting shade of purple. I took a deep breath, well aware that it might be my last free breath, and hoping that it wouldn't be.

_I can either do it or not, but what I'm doing now isn't going to help any. Let's go._

"I have a message."

Now it begins. I've set in motion my fate by now. What will happen will happen, and there wasn't anything I could do to stop it.

"You can relay that message at a later time, girl." The question-er spat coldly. "Right now-"

"It's for Colonel Roy Mustang." I continued evenly. "Here is the message. I know who killed him. We'll discuss my terms face-to-face. That is all."

"YOU-"

"Will you deliver my message? I have rights, don't I? Right to counsel?" Alright, now that was gamble #1. I decided to count them, and if they pull through, then not only would I have a miracle, I could literally count my blessings. This one was a gamble, because I really didn't know. I didn't know if it those kinds of things were mentioned in the anime, but it sounded important, and I figured they had some sort of system.

The look that distorted on his face was answer enough. I felt my heart and stomach flutter upwards into my throat, making me seem like I was about to fly away or else choke. He was going to deliver my message.

"Fine, girl." He growled. "Sergeant," He whipped his head to glare at one of the guards standing by with a pad and pencil. I guessed that he had been taking notes for later study or something.

"Yes, sir."

"Take the message to Colonel Roy Mustang in Central by the fastest means possible."

"Sir!" The young man did a salute and turned sharply on his heel to stride out.

I allowed myself a deep breath again. The guy in front of me grumbled something, then said "You are dismissed" and walked out, bringing his entourage with him. I felt numb and stared at my hands that were folded in my lap. This was it. My first real decision during this whole adventure. My first playing card, set down on the table. What would happen now?

William had come in at one point, and when he spoke, it was worried and full of concern for my wellbeing. He leaned down to me, not yet comfortable enough to get too close.

"What did you do, Miss Peyton?" he asked, almost sounding scared. "What kind of message did you send for?"

Indeed, I thought wryly. What have I done? Roy would know. He would also probably fry my ass. But it was worth it, or at least I could tell myself that.

I leaned back and closed my eyes, trying to regulate my beating and the insistent thudding of my heart.

I was _so_ dead.

_**A/N: Woo! Yeah. First actual decision. *streamers* **_

_**And there was much rejoicing.**_


	7. Roy Mustang

_~*Roy Mustang*~_

I sat at my desk, my hands folded with my elbows propped up. I had just received a call from the Holding Office, where they held and questioned suspects in crimes. They said that someone they'd recently taken into custody had a message for me.

My eyebrows knitted together as the message replayed in my head: "_I know who killed him. We'll discuss my terms face-to-face."_

Him. Instantly, my blood had run cold, and it took a huge amount of effort to keep my tone level and steady as I thanked the soldier for the message and promised to contact them later. I had to force myself to hang up the phone calmly. Inside, I felt the desire to set something ablaze. Anything.

Him.

There wasn't any question of who it could be. My closest friend, Maes Hughes, had been murdered in a phone booth not too long ago. And whoever this was, this girl, claimed to know who had killed him. I knew I had to keep to regulation, to stay professional, but…

I clenched my teeth together and closed my eyes; pulling myself back together as best I could. I needed to see this person. I needed to hear them, needed the answer. Even if it was a fake, even if they were lying, I had to try. The day I'd heard about Hughes, I promised myself that I'd solve the mystery of his death. I swore it, to Hughes, to his family, to myself.

I had to hear what she had to say, and I could decide whether or not I liked the answer.

Taking a calming breath, I picked up the phone again and dialed the number for the Holding Office.

"Colonel Mustang here," I said, "I want to speak to your presiding officer.

"One moment, please, sir." It seemed like a lifetime before I heard the officer's voice over the line.

"Yes? What is it?" he asked.

"Lieutenant, I believe I received a call earlier from your office, about a suspect having a message for me."

"Yes, sir."

"Release her and drop the charges. Bring her to me." I said coldly. I hated the thought of bending to anyone's will, but I had the feeling she wouldn't talk if it wasn't by her terms.

There was silence on the other side of the line for a while.

"This is highly irregular," he finally replied hesitantly. "Sir, are you sure?"

"I believe I gave an order, Lieutenant. Do as I say, immediately drop any charges and bring her to me. You never saw her, am I clear?" I snapped. I didn't have the time for 'irregularities' and decorum. With every second that ticked by, another second passed that the information I needed slipped away from my fingers.

"Y-yes, sir." He said quickly, hanging up.

I hung up my own phone and resumed my original position, with my arms propped up and my hands on top of the other. I waited like that, watching the door for any movement and silently praying that this would be it. That this girl really had the answers. If it was a false alarm, well…

I don't think I'd be able to restrain myself. She would most likely end up as a burn mark on the carpet. The thought cheered me up in a grim sort of way, as I kept my vigil and waited.

Not long after I'd made the call, there'd been a knock at the door and a soldier had escorted the girl in. He took up a corner of the room, watching the girl closely. She sat down in the chair in front of my desk; at first, she did not meet my gaze. I took that time to take in her body language and appearance.

She had obviously been through a lot today, her blonde hair was frizzing at the ends and her glasses were slightly crooked. She kept picking at her arms, which were covered in dried blood, and pushing back stray, feathering pieces of her side bangs. Everything about her said she was nervous and skittish, from her tightened shoulders to her nervous habit of biting her bottom lip.

"You may leave us," I said to the soldier who'd led her in.

"Uh, sir, she is a suspsect in a murder-" he began.

"I said you may leave us," I repeated icily. Rookie, I suspected. Probably new to the force and not familiar with the 'don't-ask-questions-just-do' policy of the military yet. "Are you doubting my ability to subdue a young girl, soldier?"

He saluted nervously, then, shooting a glare at the girl, which she heartily returned, walked out, closing the door behind him quietly.

"So." I said, trying to keep my voice light, without bothering to disguise the dangerous undertone, "I received your message."

She stiffened slightly, like a rabbit sighting a wolf. "Yeah?" she said, more of a statement than a question, shifting uncomfortably and chewing on her bottom lip ferociously.

"Yes." I leaned forward, unblinking. "Before we get started, I'd like you to know that if you're planning on lying to me, you may not make it out of this room. You seem familiar with my name, and probably have heard stories about me, so you can understand what kind of treatment you'll be subjected to."

At this, she made a face and looked off to the side. "Oh, I've heard stories, all right," she mumbled. "The Flame Alchemist. Likes his criminals crispy."

I felt a tinge of amusement at the last part. Maybe if we'd met under different circumstances, I would have liked this girl. Come to think of it, she looked about Fullmetal's age. But that was irrelevant now. I allowed myself a small smirk and leaned back in my chair.

"I thought so. Now, I want you to tell me what you know first, and then I might listen to your 'terms', depending on whether or not I like what you say." I said, instinctually visualizing this conversation like a chess game. In only a few minutes, I could have her in checkmate.

Her eyes flicked up to meet mine. "Sounds good," she replied softly. She was calm on the outside, but I could tell that she was twitching inside. She either had something to hide, or she really was afraid of my reputation. Good.

"Go ahead, then," I said, placing my hand on the desk and tapping it with my forefinger. I kept my eyes level with hers, watching her carefully for any signs of attempting to fight me or escape. She took a breath.

"You have to listen. You have to listen to the whole thing, and you can't judge any of it until I'm done," she began, her voice almost pleading and her eyes searching mine for anger.

I steepled my fingers and nodded once. It was then I realized that I was moving too much and resolved to stay still throughout. Can't appear to be the slightest bit uncomfortable, or else it might construe weakness.

"Okay," she breathed, obviously relieved. "Hughes was killed because he found out a terrible secret. What he found uncovered the Homunculi's plans, and they sent the shape-shifting homunculus called Envy after him. He changed into the form of Hughes' wife from a photo he saw on the ground and Hughes couldn't stand to fight back. He shot him in the head. Hughes also figured out that the Fuhrer is a homunculus, which is why he wouldn't use the main line."

I stared at her coolly. So now she was babbling about shape-shifting homunculi? Great. So she was crazy. All this trouble for nothing. Everyone knew that they didn't exist; it was impossible. But something chewed on the edge of my mind. Why on earth would she know all the details of his murder? It wasn't released to the public. And it did make sense…maybe too much sense, though. I decided to talk with her further, instead of sending her away immediately and have her committed.

"Oh, really." I said flatly. "What was the terrible secret?"

She was silent for a moment, staring off to the side. She seemed to be having an internal conversation with herself, as if debating the pros and cons of telling me. She must have reached some sort of conclusion, because she looked back up and leaned forward.

"What I am about to tell you," she breathed softly, bracing her arms on the desk and looking very serious. I felt a jolt of surprise when I realized that there wasn't a single sign that she wasn't telling the truth. What was up with this girl? "You can NOT tell anyone else. Except the people you trust within arm's reach of yourself. Are we clear?"

"Yes." I replied, partially annoyed that she would take such a tone with me, and partially concerned. _She's obviously crazy_, I reminded myself. But she was starting to make sense. And that was even worse than being shut up in a room with an insane murderer.

"Alright." She took a deep breath. "The killings in Amestris. The uprisings in Lior. It all means something. They all mark places on a map of Amestris, and when you connect the dots, it makes a transmutation circle. The homunculi are planning…uh…something big."

I watched her face for a minute, having been genuinely interested until the last part of that sentence. She frowned, glaring at the top of her head, and I wondered if she'd forgotten some part of her insane story. Well.

"I'm going to take this moment to remind you of the consequences should I find out that you're lying to me." I said quietly, my patience beginning to wear thin.

_**A/N: This chapter is crazy long. _ _lll Took me two days to write it. ~loldoesn'tlookthatwaycositsucks~**_

_**Anyways, I actually had to go and look up Lior. I thought it was Leor, but interestingly enough, Leor is an old-fashioned guy's name. I also bought the movie "Fullmetal Alchemist: the Sacred Star of Milos". It was good, but /not/ the best installment of FMA. **_

_**FMA is. - ^ -**_


	8. Cleared

_Dammit! _

I could tell that I was losing his interest, and quickly, but I couldn't remember the last part. What was it, exactly, that the homunculi were planning to do? I couldn't believe that I forgot! The entire cliff-hanging, breathtaking finale, and I'd forgotten it! I mean, I had the whole 'swallow god' thing, but there was a sort of bigger goal that Father had endeavored to accomplish, wasn't there? _Goddammit!_

"I am going to take this moment to remind you of the consequences should I find out that you're lying to me," he said, his voice quiet. Oh, God. Now I'd made him mad, and I couldn't be sure now that I'd make it out of here.

"I…I…" I stammered. _Shut up!_ My brain screamed. _Find something! Anything! He's gonna kill you! But_ the signal just wasn't reaching my mouth, and I couldn't seem to make it work the way I wanted it to. This was it. My trump card had just run out of luck.

I hung my head, counting the breaths that I had left, my mind still scrambling to find that missing piece of the plot puzzle. Hadn't I been counting something before? Oh, right. Gambles. What an idiot move, since I had barely gotten to two.

Through the chaos in my mind, an idea suddenly gleamed. If I couldn't remember that part, I would just tell him everything else. It would have to reach him somehow, wouldn't it? Even if he still thought I was crazy, I would be a crazy who knew things and thus valuable. It might work.

I took a deep breath and began to rattle off everything I knew about Fullmetal Alchemist, down to the release date on the original manga. I dug into my brain, pulling up things I hadn't realized that I knew; things from Wikipedia, from the anime itself, and from the various places where I'd seen any sort of resemblance to the plotline.

Once my brain checked back in, I realized that I had been sitting there with my mouth open for a few minutes, having been emptied of anything to say. Embarrassed, I shut it and sat back down, wiping excess drool off on my shoulder. I met his eyes with mine, trying not to blink, which was difficult with his fathomless black orbs.

"That's everything I know. I'm sorry I can't remember the last part of whatever the homunculi's plans are." I said carefully.

His gaze didn't waver for a second as he sat there, hopefully contemplating what I'd said and not the proper way to fry me. Finally, he laid his arms down on the desk and straightened.

"You said this Envy person, this homunculus living underneath Central, killed Hughes?" he asked slowly.

"Yes," I replied, keeping my tone as steady as I could.

He nodded once, as though confirming something to himself. "I've decided to believe you. Your guess is as good as any, and your story makes sense, albeit perhaps an insane patient's sense. I'm going to allow you to live, and see if this unfolds the way you say it will. What are your terms?"

"My what?" I asked dazedly, having turned into a puddle in my chair from relief. He believed me. I wasn't going to die. I've got Roy Mustang on my side now. One step closer to getting home. So far, so good.

"You said you had terms, right? I'll hear them now."

"Oh. Oh, right." I exhaled in a nervous chuckle and pushed back my bangs. "I, ah, I need you to get Edward Elric."

His eye twitched slightly, and for a minute, I was afraid I was back in fryer. "'Get' Edward Elric?" he repeated. "What for?"

"Eheh, you see, it's like I said, I need to get back home, and I figure he can do it."

"Why don't you just get him yourself?"

I felt a sheepish grin stretch my face and I shrugged with my hands upturned helplessly. "Well, you see," I explained, "I tried, but he thinks I'm crazy and he ran away. So I kind've need you to make him listen." _Well done, hero. Make him listen. Such a way with words,_ my conscience mocked.

"Really." The side of his mouth twitched in what I assumed was amusement. "Do you want me to pull rank on him, or just hold him down?"

A blush rose to my face as the thought of Roy holding Edward down and the various slashfics that I'd not-quite-so accidentally stumbled upon that contained something along those lines. I had to remind myself that this was canon before I could stop the hyperventilating that threatened to overtake my breaths. I wondered if he noticed, but if he did, he took no stock of it.

"Ah, just talk to him first, and convince him to stay and listen, that would be fine," I managed to choke out, mentally stabbing at the thought bubble with RoyEd. Those kinds of thoughts wouldn't do any good, and probably would just make this whole ordeal harder to deal with.

"I suppose I can do that much. Anything else?" he asked.

Was there? I couldn't remember that, either. Fantastic, so I was just becoming an amnesiac. I pondered for a moment, when the thought of William popped up in my head. He'd helped me out so much, even though he didn't really need to, and he was so sweet with his sick girlfriend and declarations of love. Shouldn't I do something for him, too?

"Yeah, could you promote William Bentham and raise his salary? Oh, and maybe give him a few days of break soon?"

"William Bentham?"

"He's new."

Roy raised an eyebrow at me, a knowing smile touching his lips. "Your lover?"

"Ahah, no. He was just really helpful." I was fully aware of how stupid that sounded, but it was the truth, and I was trying to stick as close to that as humanly possible.

"Is that it?"

"That's it."

Roy nodded again, and reached for his phone. As he dialed, and as I was fascinated by the old-timey phone, he was muttering to himself under his breath. Something about children and annoying, I think? I don't know. I was watching the phone very closely, being a lover of steampunk and old Victorian style. The electronics and gadgetry in this place was heaven.

It took me a while to figure out that he was talking to me now. "-hotel across the street. You can stay there if you need it; I'll get you a room."

"That sounds great!" I barely managed to catch myself before I whooped and jumped up in the air. So I'll be staying in the FMA universe for an undetermined amount of time, probably over a period of several days, and in the meantime, be hanging out with the main characters. The anime nerd in me was beside herself in joy, and I couldn't blame her.

"Maybe you could shower there, too," Roy added over my thoughts, crinkling his nose and looking at the phone instead of me. "Ah, yes, this is Colonel Roy Mustang." He began, his attention now turned to the person on the other line.

I made a face at him, despite feeling jittery and idiotically happy inside. I was going home, but before I did, I could maybe get a chance to enjoy myself here. What more could I ask for?

_**A/N: You have no idea how much I dragged my feet before finally adding this chapter. Roy is probably WAY out of character, and I apologize for that. Plus, the whole, 'let's just believe you' thing is a stretch, but it was something.**_

_**F.Y.I., I am not a RoyEd shipper. (I'm a EnvyEVERYONE shipper. XDDD;;/shot)**_

_**Leave a message after the beep.**_


	9. Mission: Get Ed On Board

~*Alphonse Elric*~

We were back in the library again, going through as many books as we possibly could, just like we normally did. But…I glanced over at my brother, already deep inside a textbook so old that the title had worn off, and sighed inwardly. I couldn't get into it right now. This library had begun to feel like home, even with all the dust, and I could normally get right to work. I guess I still felt bad about running away from that girl.

"Ed?" It took to the count of five before he raised his eyes to me, still not completely peeled away from his studies. Ed was always really good at focusing, but it could be a problem when I wanted to really talk to him.

"Hmm?"

"I…" I fidgeted, suddenly uncomfortable. He would probably just blow me off and say that she was fine; that the authorities could pick her up. Still, he had to know that I wasn't comfortable with the whole idea of just leaving someone in the street when they obviously needed help. "I don't feel right about that girl."

He watched me for a minute, his eyes unreadable. That was another thing that frustrated me about my brother. When he was actually thinking about something, you couldn't tell anything about what it might be.

"I mean," I began again, "It wasn't something we normally do. Shouldn't we try to, y'know, help or something?"

After a few more agonizing seconds of silence, he sat up and sighed, closing his eyes and shutting the book with a hearty thump, sending a dust cloud about his hands. "Look, Al, I told you before. She's probably fine. Stop worrying so much about it."

I knew it. Geez, he was predictable.

"Well, but-" I started again, determined to find some way to make this sit right.

There was a knock at the door, then, and we both looked up at the same time. Ed blinked, then turned back to me.

"If it's bothering you so much, we'll go and ask about her at the police station, alright?" he said in a low voice, before calling out to the door, "Come in."

That was better, I supposed. Still not quite what I'd been thinking, but definitely a step in the right direction. _Maybe everything would be alright,_ I reasoned. _After all, what's the worst that could have happened? _Thoughts of what had happened lately in this town swamped my mind and I decided to scratch that last part. Best not to think about the worst that could happen.

A young man, dressed in the Amestris military uniform, opened the door and saluted. He looked a little flustered, like he'd just seen a ghost. Or been yelled at, which you saw a lot in the military.

"Sir! First Lieutenant Patrick Gurney, reporting as directed." He barked sharply.

"Sure," Ed waved at him dismissively, one eyebrow raised. "What's up?"

"Colonel Mustang sent for you. He said someone was there to see you."

My brother and I exchanged puzzled looks. It couldn't be Winry, could it? She usually called before coming all the way out here, and it was usually because Ed had wrecked his arm again. We hadn't been in a fight for several days, so we couldn't have bothered anyone. For a moment, I thought of the strange girl on the sidewalk, but the thought disappeared almost as soon as it popped up. Too much of a coincidence.

"All…right.." Ed replied hesitantly, grabbing his jacket and pulling it on. He stood up and turned to me. "You ready to go, Al?" he asked.

"Yeah. I couldn't focus anyways," I stood and inclined my head to the soldier. "Thank you for the message."

"Thank you, sir." With that, the young man spun around on his heel and strode out, probably off to report back to his officer.

"Who do you think it is?" Ed asked me when we were outside, on our way to Mustang's office.

"I was hoping you knew," I replied, feeling a little uneasy. What if it was someone bad? I don't think Mustang would let someone like that into his office, but what if he didn't know? "Brother, what if it's someone like Envy, someone in disguise?"

"That's what I was thinking." He looked down at his feet, frowning. "But if it was, wouldn't they have killed Mustang first? Everyone knows he's been helping us. Oh, well. I don't really feel like puzzling this out, when we can just walk over there and find out ourselves. Whoever it is, they'd better be important."

~"~

We were standing outside of Mustang's office a few minutes later, and exchanged glances again before Ed rapped on the door with his knuckles. After waiting a few beats to hear Roy's muffled "Come in.", Ed pushed the door open and walked in, with me following in closely behind.

"What's this about, Colonel?" Ed asked suspiciously.

Mustang, who was sitting comfortably at his desk with his feet propped up, shrugged, the trademark grin of his that said he knew something you didn't touching his features. "Close the door, Fullmetal."

I reached behind me and shut the door softly, so it wouldn't make a loud noise, and turned back around. When I did, I had a better view of the couches that were situated on one side of the room. They circled around a coffee table, and one of them had a person in it.

I gaped for a moment, completely thrown back by surprise. "You-"

The girl we'd met on the sidewalk smiled cheekily and waved. She looked like she'd had a rough day, (was that dried blood?..), but at least she looked sort of sane, now. "'Sup, Al, Ed?"

Ed spun around, eyes wide. "WHAT THE HELL?" he exclaimed. "HOW THE-"

"Fullmetal," Colonel Mustang interjected pointedly. "This is Peyton. She is from another world, and she needs your help to get back there."

We both stared at him incredulously. Did he really just say that?

"What are you talking about, Colonel?" Ed looked him up and down, even more suspicious than he'd been when he'd walked in. "That girl," he threw his thumb over his shoulder, "Is crazy. Are you sure it's not contagious? What do you mean about 'another world'?"

"Is that blood?" I blurted, asking the girl, or Peyton, as I now knew her name was. It'd been bothering me since I saw her, and I couldn't help but be worried if she was hurt or if she'd hurt someone else.

"Yeah," she wrinkled her nose, plucking at her shirt. "Envy stabbed me. Don't ask how I came back to life; I've no clue."

Envy? As in, green-haired homunculus Envy? She had both mine and Ed's full attention now. We gaped at her. Why would she know about him at all, never mind her comment about 'coming back to life'. Who was this girl?

"How the hell do you know Envy?" Ed asked, pointing a finger at her accusingly. "Who are you, anyway?"

She sighed, standing up and adjusting her glasses. "Gentlemen," she began, "If you would have a seat, I'll explain everything." When neither of us moved, she glared at us pointedly from over the golden rims. It was obvious that she wasn't going to continue until we did what she said, so I sat down, gently tugging on Ed's jacket. He glared at her, narrowing his eyes, then sat down, flopping into the cushions like a child being scolded, and folded his arms.

"Alright. So, you see…"

~"~

"I don't get it," Ed said again, leaning forward intently, with his elbow propped up on his knee and his chin in his hand. He was frowning, trying to process everything logically. I had stopped doing that about half an hour ago, but I doubted he ever would.

The sun had begun to set, even though it had only been afternoon when Mustang had reintroduced us to the strange girl named 'Peyton'. She had been explaining, to the very best of her ability I thought, her world and how she found herself here. The explaining that had taken the most time wasn't really her personal story, since it was pretty short (she fell asleep, she woke up here, the end) besides the fact that she had as little clue as we did about how it happened, but brother had refused to accept her saying that in her world, our lives were just a form of entertainment; a story that had already reached its end.

"So, in this 'Brotherhood' anuh-main thing, we both get our bodies back, and everything turns out okay?" he asked, only for about the fourth time.

"Anime," Peyton corrected, surprisingly patient, sitting cross-legged on the table in front of us, surrounded by piles of scribbled-on papers. "And mostly, yeah. Al gets his body back, you get your arm back, you marry Winry and have kids at the end."

I glanced over at him to catch the blush that rose upward and his infuriated expression.

"GAH! Shut up!" he shrieked. "I am NOT in love with Winry!"

"If you would just stop denying, dude," she chuckled devilishly, an evil grin snaking over her features. "I already know the ending. You are COMPLETELY in love with Winry."

Ed stood straight up and began shouting threats at her, pushing up the sleeves of his shirt while she laughed and poked fun at him, disturbing a pile of paper that had drawings of Envy and Ed fighting in a scene that she called 'That Ballroom Scene in the Original Anime That I've Only Seen on Youtube', whatever that meant.

"You wouldn't hit a girl, would you?" she taunted.

"I'll send you FLYING, you creep!"

"Shorty, shrimp, pea-sized, beansprout," she stuck out her tongue at him, only to receive one of the couch cushions in her face. Ed started pulling the cushions up and throwing them at her, only for her to pick them up and throw them back, both shouting insults at the top of their lungs.

"WILL YOU SHUT UP?" Roy slammed his hands on the table and stood up, his teeth gritted and his eyebrows knotted together. He looked tired, though I couldn't blame him. This was the third time that brother's and Peyton's discussions of her world had turned into a war.

We all looked up at him, probably looking like a group of naughty children, with drawings all over the floor and couch cushion piles on either side of the table.

"Now, this has been going on for four hours," he continued. "I suggest you leave eachother alone and continue in the morning, preferably somewhere NOT in my office."

Ed blinked and looked out the window, astonishment crossing his features. "Whoah. Is it really that late?" He stood and stretched, casually kicking one of the cushions back towards Peyton, which she batted away with an expression of disdainful amusement. "I guess you're right, Colonel."

"Wait, does Peyton have somewhere to stay?" I asked, trying not to sound too worried, though it might be dangerous for her to wander the streets alone, especially if she's already met Envy.

"Oh, yeah, don't worry about that," Peyton waved dismissively, standing up herself and stretching. "Ol' Roy here set me up with a hotel room across the street." She placed her hands on her hips and smiled reassuringly and confidently. "I'm good."

"Alright, then," Ed grinned widely and jerked a thumb towards himself, "We'll finish this tomorrow, Peyton."

Her smile became a bit distant, like she was remembering something fond. "Yeah, Edward. I guess we will." She giggled a little at the end of that sentence, but it was more like a hiccup. An idea occurred to me that I hadn't thought of earlier.

"Peyton, in your world, would this be like meeting a super-famous celebrity?" I asked, curious.

"YES," she exploded, gripping her hair and throwing her head back. "It's been driving me crazy, but I didn't want to give him the satisfaction. I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M TALKING TO EDWARD ELRIC AND ALPHONSE ELRIC AND ROY MUSTANG AND…..AND…" she took a deep breath, "I can't believe I GOT KILLED BY ENVY. So amazingly, freakishly cool! I LOVE this world!"

"Whaaaat?" Ed stared at her, dumbfounded. "You're happy you got killed? You psycho!"

"He was my favorite character!" she protested. "I was WAY up close and personal with the best, creepiest palm tree in the universe!"

"HE-"

I grabbed Ed's shirt and pulled him towards the door, knowing that it would probably take another four hours before he wound down if I let him get all crazy again. I guess you could say that I'm his good sense…?

"Alright, bye, Peyton!" I said quickly, smothering my brother's protests with the hand that wasn't dragging him down the hallway. "See you later!"

"You, too, Al!" she called back. So, I guess everything turned out alright. We didn't leave a poor soul behind to suffer, (though I did feel bad that she died almost immediately after), and she was actually a person from another world who adores us and knows the future. A little bit crazy, still, I had to admit, but pretty awesome.

_**A/N: I think I can call this long, don't you think? If you were in this sort of situation, how would you react? Like, having pillow, (alright, couch cushion), fights with Edward Elric, telling Roy how Hughes died, getting murdered by Envy, or any of the homunculi, for that matter? I'd freak out at **_**least **_**once. **_

_**By the way, I've been getting a lot of really great reviews on this. (6 counts as a lot; I'm new here, okay?)**_

_**I just wanted to say thank you guys so much. I'm surprised no one has stepped in and said, "NOPE, NO, this sucks, shut it down." I must be doing something right, huh? Again, thanks. I'm glad you like it. (What's that? You DON'T like it? Four words. Come. At. Me. Bro.)**_

_**The testing will begin shortly, leave a comment or review or something somewhere. **_


	10. Best Day Evar

The next day, after I'd taken a shower and washed my clothes, (it had taken a long time, the entirety of my morning wrapped up in a fluffy bathrobe which I hoped I could keep) , I met up with Ed and Al in Roy's office to discuss how to get me back to my world. Roy refused to let us in unless we promised to leave the couch cushions alone, but I'm pretty sure Ed had his fingers crossed behind his back, too. After that, we got straight to business, negotiating how long I was to stay in their world and what I would do during that time. Honestly, I wanted to go around and meet everyone, but I knew it was out of question if my sightseeing got in the way.

"Well, I'd like to meet and greet all the familiar characters from the anime," I murmured, sighing dramatically with my chin propped up in my hand. "But I know that not everyone is exactly on speaking terms. Although…there is _one_ person I'd like to avoid."

"Oh, yeah?" Ed asked, sarcastic. I think my being Envy's fangirl kind've got to him, even after I'd explained that though I don't usually like main characters, he was pretty freaking awesome. "Who would that be? Armstrong?"

I snorted, thinking of Armstrong and his manly sparkles. Of Manliness. "Are you kidding? I love that guy to death. No, I mean Selim. Can we just try to stay away from him at all and any costs?"

The three guys all stared at me disbelievingly. I knew what was going through their heads, since they were hardly past the piece of the storyline where Hughes died. They wouldn't even know about the Fuhrer, much less his so-called 'son'.

"Selim." Roy repeated flatly, one eyebrow raised. "Selim Bradley, the adorable little son of Fuhrer King Bradley? _That_ Selim? I'd have thought that since you're a girl, you'd like him since he's cute."

"Yeah. I did. When I still thought he was a little kid who adored Ed and not a creepy-ass homunculus." I muttered. "That 'eyes and teeth in the darkness' thing weirds me out beyond belief, and his disjointed, whispery, horror-movie voice gives me nightmares." I shuddered at the thought of meeting him face-to-face. _NOT if I can help it,_ I thought firmly. _And if I can't, I'm running like the hounds of hell were at my heels._

"What? Selim's one of them?" Al exclaimed. "Are you sure?"

"Never been more sure of anything," I replied. "Selim is Pride, the first of the homunculi, and he's the creepiest little mofo I've ever had the displeasure of seeing, in ANY anime, in ANY manga, OR in real life. And he's creepier, even, because I thought he was so adorable and I wanted to huggle and cuddle him because he was all 'I wanna be like the Fullmetal Alchemist!' and then he's like, 'I'm watching you from the shadows'." I pitched my voice up and lowered it dramatically, wiggling my fingers and rolling my eyes for effect. It was true that the parts where Selim made an appearance were my least favorite parts, simply because he freaked me out. Which was kind of odd, considering that Envy was my favorite, but at least _he_ doesn't give me nightmares.

"Alright. I'll believe that," Roy said dismissively. "Anything else?"

"I don't think so. Actually, yeah. Can we go looking around?" I asked. "Have you guys found Ling yet?"

"The Xing prince? Yeah."

"I want to see him, too!" I smiled excitedly. "I want to see Havoc, and Riza, and I want to pet Black Hayate, and-"

"Alright, alright. So it's settled, then. Peyton, you'll stay here for a couple of weeks and we'll see if things turn out the way you say, although I have to admit that you're pretty convincing already. In the meantime, you can go around and see the sights that you want to. I want you to report back here every evening at 7:00 sharp, to write down key elements of what should happen in the future. You can help the Elrics with their philosopher stone and at the end, you can help them transport you back to your world. Sound good?" Roy asked, looking at the three younger people sitting on the couch in front of his desk.

"Sounds great!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah." Edward grinned and nodded.

"Cool!" Alphonse agreed.

~"~

Quite a few hours later, I caught myself humming and grinning ear-to-ear; something I don't usually make a habit of. I'd hate to look as idiotic as I sometimes feel, but this time there was just no containing it. Al, Ed, and I had rushed out of Roy's office, hitting the city hard and running around to make stops to meet just about everyone. I'd chatted with Riza and played a little fetch with Black Hayate, since we'd caught them just as she'd been taking him for a walk. We went to see Armstrong and I got the true experience of being in front of him when he does the speech. It was really something, I have to admit, an art form that began with him ripping his shirt off and declaring that [insert anything in the world] had been passed down the Armstrong family for generations, a generous application of sparkles, and posing. I think I was slightly blind for a few minutes afterwards.

We stopped by a small shop and brought Havoc a pack of cigarettes, which he accepted with a smile, and Ling even popped up once. He reminded us that we were hungry, and at the expense of Ed's wallet, we went out to eat at a restaurant on the outskirts of town that had the most delicious steak I think I've ever eaten. I was utterly dismayed when I realized that the sun had begun dipping down underneath the horizon.

"What time is it?" I asked idly, glaring at the sun. Why couldn't it have stayed up a little longer? As soon as the thought had formulated itself, I felt the urge to laugh bubble up in my throat. Not too long ago, in fact, just this morning, I'd hated the sun for coming up. And now I was mad at it for going down. _How much can one place change you in such a short time? _I mused to myself, watching the last light go out on what may have been the best day of my life.

"Dunno," Ed replied, reminding me that I actually existed and not just floating around inside my head. "But that clock tower says '6:55'." He added, pointing towards it.

_6:55?_ A twinge of apprehension activated itself in my brain and I squinted at the clock face as if I could coerce it into telling me what it was about. _Didn't that mean I was late for something? Or was going to be? Man, I hate to be late. I should get myself a watch. A pocketwatch, while I'm here. Pocketwatch. Military…OH SHIT, ROY!_

"Roy! I'm gonna be late!" I shouted, grasping at my hair. Jeez, he was going to _kill_ me! I turned to the Elric brothers. "I've gotta go, like, now!" I exclaimed. "I'll see you guys tomorrow!" I spun around on my heel and started running as fast as I could, towards the Central main building.

"Hey, wait-!" Al called after me, reaching forward as if he was about to stop me.

"Peyton! You can't just wander around by yourself!" Ed yelled, "It's too dangerous! Hey! We're talking to you!"

"Thanks guys!" I shot backwards, hoping they could hear, but not sparing the time to look back to make sure. "I'll be fine!"

I rounded a corner, their voices fading behind me. I don't think they were following me yet, but I'd be okay if I just went straight to Central Command. I mean, it wasn't like I'd be stopping to eyeball and agitate every homeless person in the city, was it? With that kind of logic, unless Central had a huge problem with a rodents of unusual size* overpopulation, I'd get there in one piece, maybe even just a minute or two over 7.

_Central doesn't have rats; it has something much bigger and more dangerous, _my conscience whispered inside my head. Before I could muse over what I could have meant by that, (sometimes, I am a mystery to myself) , I turned into another street, accidentally bumping into someone as I did so. My face and hands collided with rock-hard abs and I had to stumble backwards to look up at the person.

"Oh, so-" I began to apologize, squinting at the figure. It was officially dark now, and I could only make out a faint outline of them, but I got the feeling that they didn't have the same problem.

"Enjoying yourself?" they hissed, anger and amusement mingling together in a terrifying way. In the middle of their face, I saw the unmistakable glimmer of faint light shining off of teeth; either from grinning maliciously or grimacing mockingly. It took me a minute to process their voice, but before I could even begin to react, they'd reached forward, grabbed my neck and flung me against the wall.

My head snapped sharply against the hard brick, and as I slid down, I could feel it throbbing from the impact. Had he broken my skull? I wondered dully, as my vision began to fade again. Before it blacked out completely, I could register Envy moving towards me, my view restricted to the shadowy forms of his legs until he grasped me by my hair and dragged me upwards to face me eye-to-eye, my back against the wall.

"We need to talk, Peyton," he sneered. I mused drowsily about how I should be able to feel the pain in my head from his fingernails digging into my scalp, but everything was numb.

At that moment, I lost my last grip on consciousness and fell into my own black oblivion.

_**A/N: I know, I'm lazy. I'm sorry this didn't get put up sooner; I was having a hard time coming up with what to do next. This really should be three separate chapters, but knowing me, they'd be boring and rushed, since what I really wanted to do was some more brutal scenes featuring ENVY THE JEALOUS. And a little bit of PLOT DEVELOPMENT. Why is that in caps? I DON'T KNOW.**_

_**Anyways, so woot! Double digits! Less people are going to read this simply because of its length! Yay. Honestly didn't think it would get this far, ever.**_

_**Uhhmm…let me just apologize in advance for the ultimate otaku who'd like to point out some errors in the timeline. I honestly don't remember when exactly in the plot they A. found Hughes dead, B. found Ling, B. discovered Wrath & Pride. Forgive me, won't you?**_

_**If you'd like to see the full cover, just private message me your e-mail, since Fanfiction doesn't allow links.**_

_***"Rodents of unusual size" is a quote from the Princess Bride. **_

_**Wesley3 "Rodents of unusual size?" *shakes head* "I don't believe they exist." *said rodent jumps him from nowhere***_

_**Live Long and Comment.**_


	11. Caught

"It's you again."

I resisted the urge to groan at the owner of the voice who'd disturbed my unconsciousness. _And it's you. Again. _I thought bitterly. I sat up slowly, rubbing my temples and wincing. I was now in what appeared to be an underground room, laying on a rickety old cot that served as a bed. Sitting on a stool not too far from the bed was a person I knew very well.

"So it is," I grumbled, glaring at him. "What do you want now, palm tree?"

"Palm…" His facial expression twitched and he frowned. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"An immortal world-traveler who is in NO mood to put up with your emotional baggage," I shot back sharply. _He really did a number on me this time_, I thought_. I have the biggest headache…_

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what I said. Does this little chat have a point somewhere?" I growled. This guy was really starting to get on my nerves. Now that I knew he couldn't kill me, he didn't really scare me anymore. "I'm sure Father didn't send you down here just to look pretty."

He was quiet for a moment, glaring at me. "You won't die, and you know about us. Who and what are you?"

"Last time I told you that, you killed me. What makes you think I'll make that mistake again?"

"Because you can feel pain," he grinned nastily, his canines sharp. That sentence was all that was needed to send ice-cold shivers rolling down my spine. Okay, maybe he did scare me still. Great. So now he knew about that. Basically, I was screwed. He could torture me all he liked, and I couldn't do a damn thing about it. Even death wouldn't save me.

I matched his gaze for a minute, finding his violet eyes less attractive than I normally did. If I told him everything, then I'd put Roy and Ed in premature trouble. I mean, they were already pretty much in the doghouse when it came to the homunculi, not to mention what was to come, but in the series, it escalated gradually. On the other hand, if I held back, Envy would most definitely make this little trip a lot less fun. And the main characters didn't know about the underground entrances and stuff yet, so no one could come and save me.

"Oh, yeah. And we found this while searching you for weapons," he continued, though his words didn't really process, since I was so deep in my thoughts. As casually as you or I might lift up a curtain, he reached forward, grabbed the hem of my shirt and pulled upwards.

The effect was immediate. My brain shorted out completely and I shrieked, my face turning beet red. I grabbed either side of the shirt, trying to pull it back down. What was this? Why? I thought this was _canon_! Things like this didn't happen except in really bad fanfictions populated by Mary Sues and OOC Canons! I think I shouted something to that effect, trying to fend him off.

"Will you cut that out?" he yelled, batting my hands away and obviously furious with me for making such a fuss. "What is your problem?"

"YOU AND WINRY AND INDIGO AND NO!" I sputtered. "Make Ed your bitch if you'd like, but I don't have the pain threshold! I've seen enough fanfics to know where_ this_ is going!"

He stared at me for a moment, processing what I had said, then he became exceptionally angry. He let go of one of my wrists he'd captured, then slapped me soundly across the face. I saw stars for quite a while, and I could taste blood. The cheek that he'd managed to get burned like it was on fire. My senses thoroughly scattered, I couldn't do much else besides look at him; completely stunned.

"Don't flatter yourself," he hissed. "I would _never_ touch a human. If you want to be raped, then go piss off Greed."

"B-bu-Why my shirt?" I asked dazedly, touching a hand to the side of my face.

"Look down, you idiot." He spat.

I obliged, feeling the stunned emotion wearing off and being replaced with dull anger. Did he seriously just slap me? I mean, kill me, sure, that was something I expected from him. But a slap? God, what was this? Jersey Shore: Androgynous Angsty Homunculus V2.0? At first, I only saw the bottom of my shirt and his arm holding it up, which I fiercely tried to ignore. Then, I noticed something that was not supposed to be there.

My jaw fell open, as if I were in some sort of clichéd cartoon on Cartoon Network. There, in the middle of my chest, was…a clock? It was beautiful, though how pretty it was wasn't exactly the main thought in my head. Envy scandal forgotten, I grabbed the pocket-watch sized little watch and attempted to pull it off. Instead, I found out that it was connected to a delicate gold chain that promptly disappeared into my chest mid-link.

"WHAT IS THIS?" I shrieked, confusion upping my notes by a few scales. I felt in between the skin and the half link that existed, but there was nothing there. "WHAT THE-WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?"

"Shut up," Envy made a face, dropping my shirt. "We didn't do that. Stop playing dumb."

"I have a POCKETWATCH growing out of my CHEST, and you think this is on PURPOSE?" I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself down. _You're okay, it's fine, you're not hurt,_ I told myself frantically. _Maybe it's a good guy._

"You're so loud," he frowned, resting his head in the palm of his head. Suddenly, he grinned, looking as though a horrible idea had just shown itself inside his spiked, green head. With a quick motion, he had me on my back on the bed, standing over me sideways with one foot on my ribcage and the other on my neck, cutting off my air supply slightly.

"Let's figure out how far this chain can go," he snickered, grabbing the delicate links and yanking. Oddly enough, I thought I should be able to feel a pull from somewhere in my chest, or maybe the friction, but since it wasn't actually against my skin, I only felt a slightly uncomfortable sensation where the chain disappeared.

At first, I was terrified that it would be connected to my heart or something and he would kill me for real, but after a while, it became clear that he wasn't reaching the end of it any time soon. I felt like such a troll, seeing him getting more and more agitated and pissed with a huge, smug grin on my face.

"So, how 'bout dat weather?" I asked conversationally. He scowled at me, then dropped the chain entirely, watching it wind back up to nestle the watch against my chest. With a face that demonstrated how much he wanted to burn me at the stake and dance on my ashes, he shifted his weight to the foot perched on my neck.

I started gasping and clawing at his foot, trying to peel it off, but as demonstrated in some of the episodes of FMAB, the little bugger was a lot heavier than he looks. He leaned over, propping his elbow up on his knee.

"You know what?" he breathed, dangerously low. "I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with you."

"Heh," I managed to choke. "Freakin' Indigo. Look it up."

His eyes narrowed, and he stepped off my neck, grabbing my face in either hand.

"I'll see you later." With that, he snapped my head neatly to the side, breaking my neck and killing me for the second time since I'd stepped into this insane asylum of a show.

_**A/N: Sorry it took so long; I haven't been on my actual laptop for a while. Fun fact: This fanfiction has over a thousand views. Thanks guys. **_

_**It just keeps going up, too, which is what surprises me. **_

_**8 favs and 9 alerts; and we're only on the 11**__**th**__** chapter! **_

_**I'd like to just say thank you so much. I appreciate it. Though I'd appreciate it more if you'd leave a little comment in the comment section/shot**_

_**Oh, and Indigo is a real comic on the web, if you google Winry, Envy, and Indigo, it pops up as a smackjeeves site. It's…well, no kids allowed. I mean, it's not too bad, but it's a bit graphic.**_

_**I don't always read fanfictions, but when I do, I review.**_

_**Stay awesome, my friends.**_


	12. RUN!

~*Envy*~

"I am interested in this girl," Father mused, his voice rumbling through the nearly empty cavern. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at his ridiculous answer to my question of what to do with the girl brat in the prisoner's room. I knew what he was going to say next before he even did; "Don't kill her just yet. Bring her to me."

"Yes, Father," I said automatically, silently fuming. I turned to walk away, glaring at the hallway in front of me. _That tottering old fool,_ I thought venomously._ She's dangerous, and he wants to bring her straight to him. _I wouldn't say that she worried me so much as she was just annoying. Besides, she knew a lot about us, and we knew nothing about her. I'd say just do away with her, but Father's word is law.

I twisted the key in the lock that lead to her room, opening it. With a small twinge of annoyance, I realized that she wasn't sitting obediently on the cot like she should have been. Instead, there were her shoes, poking out from underneath the bed, which had the sheets drawn over the side. I scoffed, closing the door behind me and striding towards the bed silently.

What kind of a fool did she take me for, with such an obvious hiding spot?

I reached over, grabbing the sheet, and yanked it off, bending down to grab the girl and drag her down to Father; maybe even 'accidentally' bumping her head on random stuff along the way. But there wasn't anything underneath; it was completely empty, aside from her shoes, weighed down with rocks so they wouldn't fall over and positioned exactly like someone was hiding under the bed. As this clicked, I heard the unmistakable sound of the door hastily opening, shutting, and the key being turned in the lock.

Stricken, I could only stare at the door for a minute, disbelief written on my face. _What the hell? I've been outsmarted? By a human? _

That thought didn't sit right, and I felt the beginnings of rage flow up over me. The warm crackling of red lighting wound around me and my arm, partially green and at least twice as large, grabbed the door and pulled it right off its rusty hinges. I sped out the door, deciding quickly that she went left from the echoes I heard in the corridor from that direction.

"I'm gonna KILL you, brat!" I shrieked down the tunnel, racing off to catch her. Though she might not have been as fast as I was, she'd had a head start. And with someone who knew the ins and outs of us, getting out of here would be easy.

Up ahead, I heard the chimeras beginning to get restless, leading me to believe that she was headed towards the elevator that sent you through the belly of Central. I twisted my face in fury. If she got out now, I was in real trouble with everyone else.

I could now see her form, hurrying along probably as fast as her human body could carry her and I felt a wave of triumph wash over me. Getting her from here would be a cinch. It was then that I realized she was shouting things at the chimeras, attempting to get them to not attack her. As stupid as they were, they were confused by what she said and did nothing.

"Don't worry, guys, hehe, yup! I'm here with Envy, yessiree," she yelled, her tone sounding like she was beginning to lose breath. "Me and him go waaay back. No problem. Whatsoever. Carry on, everything's cool."

"You stupid beasts!" I screeched. "Get her!"

"Aww, you! Now lookit that, we're playin' tag! Yeah, buddy, this is fun! Best buds forever!"

"Shut up!"

Alright, this was enough. Now I was going to kill her. Screw what Father said; he'd figure out sooner or later that this was for the best. I started to run even faster, gaining on her quicker than she could navigate the tunnels. But I could see the elevator now, getting closer and closer to releasing her into the world, armed with our secrets.

I couldn't let that happen, so I began to turn into my monstrous form, deciding that she couldn't outrun me now and that this way, I could always just eat her. However, I may have misjudged a few things. First off, she started sprinting in a way that was obviously very desperate, and pretty fast, towards the elevator. Second, my body couldn't fit in this tight space.

Furious, I began to shift back, but it was too late. She threw herself into the elevator, punched a button and waved cheekily at me as the doors closed.

"NO!" I screamed, pounding on the doors a half second after they'd shut completely. "DAMMIT!"

Great. Just fantastic. Now I'd have to go up there and catch her, and Father would be displeased both that I tried to kill her and that I let her get away. I'd have to make it a quick job, then. No mercy, nothing. Grab her, drag her, kill her. That's it. I took a deep breath, regaining my energy easily, and getting a small bit of relish from the fact that she was probably collapsed on the floor of the elevator, weak from running. Maybe she was dead already.

The thought cheered me up tremendously as I waited for the elevator to come back down. If she wasn't dead, then that shouldn't be very difficult to fix, right?

_**A/N: Longer? Haha, no. Sorry. 2,000 words was the most that I've typed so far, and I'm afraid it might not get much more than that. This was hideously short, at only 900 words, not including this note. I'm not very good at writing canon characters, I think, so I try to avoid it when I can. **_

_**I apologize for the lateness; as I write this, I am in temporary housing with no Wifi. **_

_***shameless advertisement***_

_**Are you enjoying my writing? Perhaps you'd like to read some of my original works?**_

_**I've got a story going on over at fictionpress, under the same username, if you'd like to read it. For clarification, it's called The Jack of Aces, and I would be ever in your debt if you'd check it out.**_

_**Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down, never gonna run around without reviews.**_


	13. Get Out of Central

I stared at the doors of the elevator, feeling both exhilarated and….well, completely screwed. Yes, I'd gotten away from the homunculi, but now what? Would I just be spending the rest of my time here fleeing from an inevitable showdown? I'll admit, the thought of a huge get-together and final battle kind of thing was pretty epic, and my fangirl senses were tingling, but the real question was whether I really wanted something like that to happen. I had no idea if I'd be changing the course of the story permanently, and I doubted the end result would be something I could live with. I shoved those thoughts to the back of my head, deciding to focus on the present instead of worrying over what could and might happen in the future.

I reached inside my shirt and pulled out the small pocket watch-type clock. Now that I wasn't freaking out, I could see the delicate filigree that wrapped around the rim, as tiny as a single strand of hair and the designs that encircled the back; complicated and beautiful like a language long forgotten. The front cradled the face of the clock gently, small leaves brushing against the numbers. I pushed down on the button that connected the watch itself to the chain and the front flipped open, revealing the rest of the clock that had been hidden. There was something that quickly caught my eye, then, that I would not have noticed before.

The clock was moving backwards. As inconspicuously as any old clock moves to tell you the time of day, the hands were slowly moving backwards. And in the upper right hand corner, there was another small clock embedded in the larger one, unmoving and pointing at the number 3. The smaller one was also strange in that the numbers did not end in 12, but at 10.

_What could this mean?_ I scanned the rest of the clock, searching for instructions, or _something_, but I didn't see anything of significance. I didn't have the time to investigate it further anyway, since the elevator suddenly jerked to a stop and let out a quiet little _ding_, letting me know that I had reached the only stop inside Central Command.

I let go of the clock, allowing it to wind itself back up against my chest and took a deep breath. With a small amount of surprise, I realized that it was actually cold against my skin, despite my holding it in my hands and keeping it in my shirt. Cautiously, I peeked around one corner, then the other, deciding that I would have to find someone, anyone, to hide me until I could reach Roy and Ed.

But who could I trust? I could remember that the majority of the military members, specifically the officers, were in on the whole 'let's be immortal' thing. Which means they were in league with Bradley. Which means that they were probably guarded pretty closely by Selim. I shuddered, but shook my head and took a defiant step forward and began walking down the hall, eyeing every uniformed person who walked past.

_Oh, come off it,_ I told myself sternly. _What kind of a chance do you have of meeting Selim? It's not like you spend the majority of your time eye-deep in the military's business._

"Now, master Selim, please do remember that your father is busy," an elderly voice warned from the left side of the three-way intersection in front of me. Instantly, I froze. Master Selim? No. No freaking way.

"Mother told me to bring Father a snack. He should be almost done with his meeting by now," a little voice chirruped happily in reply.

A young boy strode into view, then, a giant smile plastered on his chubby face and a small box underneath one arm. He looked like any other child bringing his father something to eat after a long day of work. Unless you knew that he wasn't really a child, Bradley wasn't really his father, and he was actually a creep fest of a homunculus that watched people from the shadows.

I stayed still, my brain completely broken by now. I may not have been breathing, either. Every bit of me was willing him to walk the other way. _Keep walking straight, Selim, keep going, _I thought to him, the only piece of my brain that was functioning. And yet, with my rotten luck, he began strolling down the hallway, turning where I was. The closer he got the stiffer I froze up, incrementally locking up and leaning backwards, a terrified grimace pasted crookedly on my face and my eyes wide. A scream of terror lodged itself in my throat and refused to leave.

I swore at myself inwardly and tried to relax, tried not to make eye contact, but by the time I began pretending that he didn't exist and coaxing my body to move forward, one foot in front of the other, he'd already stopped beside me. His large, bottomless black eyes looked up at me quizzically, though up close, I swore that I could see the teeth and eyes that snuck around in his shadows.

"I don't think I've seen you around before," he said, much to the dismay of his butler, who murmured something about being polite, "Who are you?"

_He's just a normal kid, he's just a normal kid, he's the neighbor's kid, he's not going to eat me…_

"Oh…ahh.. I'm-ahah, I'm..Katelyn. Yeah. Just delivering messages. To people."

Mentally, I facepalmed at my idiotic answer. I couldn't tell him my real name in a flimsy defensive move that hopefully wouldn't lead him to believe that one of his brethren was probably on his way right now to kick my ass and drag me back to the depths. When I was younger, I was always really quiet, and when people would ask my name, I'd mumble it, leaving them to mishear me constantly. I just went with that instead of any of the stupid names that floated around in my brain. But delivering messages to people? Which part of me had come up with that? I couldn't say I was delivering to Roy, because the homunculi were already keeping an eye on him. And I couldn't say the Fuhrer, for obvious reasons. If he asked me any further about what I did, then I would be dead.

He frowned, and though he didn't lose the 'adorable' look on his face, I could tell that he was now awfully suspicious and probably planning to confer with his 'friends' later to figure out who I really was. He was about to ask me another question when his butler interrupted quietly.

"Young Master Selim," he coughed politely, "Your Father will be waiting, should we not hurry?"

Selim turned to look at him and nodded once, then started walking away, nearly skipping in his overabundance of 'I'm-just-a-cute-little-kid' act. I didn't turn around to watch him go, but allowed myself to the count of five before I took a huge, much-needed breath of some good old oxygen.

So close. So very close. And I probably didn't get off as well as it might have seemed. But now what I had to remember was that not only did I have a pissed-off Envy on my tail, who, I might add, could be any of these people who walked by, I now was going to be under surveillance from my least favorite character of the entire series. Fantastic. So I was making friends everywhere, basically.

I picked up the pace, walking quickly through the halls and totally lost. _Give me Hawkeye, give me Havoc, give me _someone_, for Pete's sake! _I thought hurriedly, begging to the universe to just throw a familiar face my way. I rounded another corner, and for the second time during this crazy adventure, ran straight into someone.

For a split second, I was terrified that it was Envy and that it was over, all over. I looked up, about to spit another insult in his face and maybe annoy him some more before he figured out how to kill me permanently, but instead I saw what was easily at least six feet of pure, blond, sparkly, muscles.

"What are you doing here?" we both asked in unison, Armstrong's eyes uncharacteristically wide underneath his bushy brows. He straightened, looking down at me suspiciously, and for a moment, the thought that he might be Envy again ran through my mind. He 'harrumphed' and suddenly gripped me in a bone-crushing hug, his sparkles going crazy all over the place. Unmistakable, now.

"You are the time-traveling girl that will be assisting Edward Elric and his brother get their original bodies back! What a noble cause, truly! I have only ever seen such kindness in my own family, as it is a trait that has been-"

"-Passed down in the Armstrong family for generations," I wheezed, trying to get my ribcage out of his grip. "You're Armstrong alright. But listen, I need help-"

"Anything!" he rumbled, squeezing me harder on cue with that one word before setting me down. "What is it?"

I coughed, rubbing my sides and smiling up at him ruefully. "I need you to hide me. There're homunculi after me, and I need to find Ed and Roy."

His eyebrows knitted together. "Homunculi?" he repeated. "That's not possible."

"Yes, it is, and if they catch me, then I can't help anyone. You see the problem here?" I replied sharply, casting a quick glance around me. Envy could be around any corner, and I needed Armstrong's cooperation, now.

"Very well. I shall get you to Colonel Mustang's office. Come-!"

"No, no!" I waved my arms to get his attention away from his biceps and back towards me. "I can't stay in Central Command. I need you to take me to Ed first."

"Oh." For a moment, I felt bad for him, like I'd just hurt the feelings of a puppy. But he proved that he was fine by doing his trademark 'rise above the terrified victim while spewing tears' thing. "THEN I SHALL TAKE YOU TO EDWARD ELRIC IN HASTE!"

"Shhhh!"

Now this was going to be fun, I could already tell. But how on Earth was I going to get out of Central Command?

_**A/N: I had to have Armstrong in there somewhere. You can't not love his mustached self.**_

_**Oh, and I really am that terrified of Selim. **_

_**~"~**_

_**I'm going to take this time to thank you guys again. SERIOUSLY. I can't leave this story alone for a day or two before someone new reviews, favorites, alerts, or all three, even! 11 comments so far, and all of them so complimentary. **_

_**I'm just letting you know that I do read the comments, (and each one is very dear to my heart; do not doubt my capacity to love each and every one of you. Resistance is futile.), and I try very hard to take the slightest of criticism into consideration. Thank you!**_

_**Finally, in a reply to Owlgrrl's comment, I'm so glad you think so. I have a terrible time with worrying about my OCs and Mary-Sue-itis, particularly the ones that exist in stories that aren't my own. As for the watch, why it's there is PLOT. But I can tell you that it's in her chest for the simple reason that it seemed the most logical for its purpose. **_


	14. Get Into Central

~*Ling Yao*~

"What about north? Did you look up there?" Ed asked again.

"Yes. I looked everywhere. I didn't see her." I replied, sitting on their windowsill with my legs crossed and my head rested in the palm of my hand. "I even sent Lan Fan and Fu to look back over the alleyway that you said you saw her last. There's no one there."

"Dammit, Peyton!" Ed sighed heavily, running a hand through his hair and glaring frustratedly at the ground. "Where the hell did you go?"

"What about her Qi? Can't you track her with that?" Alphonse asked while his brother paced the room.

"Actually, she doesn't have one." I replied, thinking it over myself. It was true; when I had met her for the first time, I was surprised that she didn't seem to have any Qi; something Lan Fan also pointed out to me later on. It was one of the reasons that I believed she was being honest about traveling between worlds.

"What, do you need an item of hers or something? And you call yourself a Xingese prince," Ed muttered, rolling his eyes at me.

"Do not insult the young lord!" Lan Fan piped up angrily from the window beside me, glaring fiercely at him.

"I told you, she doesn't have Qi. I don't know why or how that's even possible, but there's nothing to track."

"So we have no idea how to find her?" Alphonse asked quietly to no one in particular.

I had to admit, the thought was upsetting to me as well. She had survived, or so she said, an attack from strange beings called 'homunculi' before. Which meant she was immortal, and in a way that seemed most beneficial, since it didn't look like there were any catches. I had hoped to get some of that for myself, but there was no way that would happen without the girl.

"Wait a minute," Ed's suddenly quiet voice directed all of our attention towards him. He'd stopped pacing, his hand on his chin thoughtfully. "She said Envy had killed her, right?"

"Right," I said hesitantly.

"What do you think would happen if he found her again, still alive?"

We were all silent, then. What, indeed, would happen? Nothing pleasant, I imagined.

"He'd take her to his Father," Alphonse answered. "Because humans don't come back, and they'd want to know if she would interfere with their plans."

"And she told us where the homunculi were centered already, so then that means…" Ed continued.

"She's in Central," Lan Fan whispered, her expression unreadable. "She's underneath a collection of evil men, surrounded by creatures who wish her dead. That's horrible…If the young lord were in such a predicament-"

"Well, I'm not," I interjected quickly, raising my head. "So what now? We know where she is. Are we just going to run in, screaming and waving swords?"

"We can't. Not with the military in on the homunculi's plans."

"So what do we do?"

"There is nothing we can do," Fu said quietly, speaking up for the first time since we'd met back at Ed and Al's room. "If the young woman was right, then the entire underground of that place is a hornet's nest of evil beings. And the aboveground is swarming with the same. We cannot go underground to get to her from their entry point."

"What are you sayin', gramps?" Ed eyed him apprehensively. "You want us to dig a tunnel in the backyard or something?"

"Perhaps there is more than one way inside the nest," he replied calmly, matching Ed's glare. "If we can find it, then we will take them by surprise, and perhaps collect the girl with little to no casualties."

"But we have no idea of where to even start," Alphonse pointed out. "It's a good plan, but we can't search the city all day. Peyton might not have that long."

There was a knock on the door, then, disrupting our thoughtful silence. Ed got up, and I slid out of the windowsill to sit on the couch comfortably, Lan Fan following to sit on the other side of the couch. Fu stayed where he was, as did Alphonse.

"Who is it?" Ed asked cautiously, not bothering to standing on his tip toes to peer out of the eyehole.

"Private First Class William Bentham, sir, just delivering a message," came the muffled reply.

"Oh, yeah? From who?"

"Colonel Mustang, sir. He said it was urgent."

Ed glared at the door for a moment. It was obvious that ever since Peyton had disappeared, he'd been distrusting of everyone that so much as looked twice at him. He was certainly very good at being paranoid. "What were his exact words?"

"Ahh…I'd rather not repeat them, sir, if you don't mind." The young man behind the door shifted uncomfortably. His Qi seemed normal enough, too.

"Ed, he's not a homunculus," I said, leaning back on the comfortable couch. Maybe while we were here, I could get something to eat…Ed's hotel had the best room service and good food.

Ed shot me a glare, then pulled the door open to reveal a man, probably in his early 20s with dark red hair and green eyes. He saluted quickly, then held out a note, smiling as he did so.

Taking the note, Edward began reading silently, frowning at the content. William shifted uncomfortably for a moment before blurting out; "Sir, are you the Fullmetal Alchemist?"

"Yeah," Ed replied absentmindedly. "Why?"

"Well, it's just…I met someone earlier today who was looking for you. I wonder if she's found you yet, if you beg my pardon for being so nosy."

Instantly, the room went quiet.

"'She'?" Ed repeated, looking up. "You mean Peyton?"

The private brightened up considerably, relaxing as he did so. "Oh, good. She was awfully nice, and even got me promoted! I just got back from visiting my love in Tinam, and it's all because she put in a good word for me with the Colonel. I was hoping she'd had some luck with finding you."

"So…you know Peyton?"

"Briefly, yes. I was charged with bringing her into custody on suspicion of murder, but the charges were dropped. What luck!" He smiled cheerfully.

"Have you seen her lately?"

"Well, I thought I spotted her earlier, wearing some sort of cloak and walking with a large man with a mustache," he pointed at his own face as he spoke, "but I had to report to the Colonel's office and couldn't stop to chat."

Ed glanced back at us, his expression mirroring everyone's in the room. A mustache? Then, she was with the Armstrong man? How did she escape?

He swung back around, startling William as he did so. "Take us to where you saw them," he demanded.

"Of course, sir. My car is just around the corner."

_**A/N: Yay, William saves the day!1!11!one! Totally not expected of an OC, right? But he's so adorable, I couldn't just forget about him.**_

_**And I do apologize for the amount of conversation going on here; I know I usually have a lot of details and such, but this is how the chapter ended up. **_

_**Pfft, you can't even tell that this is Ling thinking. _ _lll I'm even worse with the Xingese Prince. **_

_**To the emo corner, awaaaaaaayyyy! kthxbyz**_


	15. To Narnia!

"Quickly, Miss Peyton!" Armstrong urged me, gently pushing me into the backseat of his car. "Before someone sees you!"

"I honestly think that if they saw me, we would know." I muttered, sliding down until I was curled up against the back of the passenger's seat. It was warm, there, and smelled faintly like dog. I guessed Riza had taken a ride in his car once in a while, bringing Black Hayate with her, of course. Armstrong started the car up, which purred underneath me like some sort of friendly animal itself. The movement was faintly reassuring. It was then that I realized I was exhausted.

Not just physically, since I'd been running around since I woke up in the bowels of the homunculi's lair, but mentally. I was stretched thinly inside my mind, the adrenaline fading from my limbs and leaving a sort of heaviness to my thoughts. My eyes drooped halfway closed as I watched the backseat blearily. _I wonder,_ I thought_, if they're looking for me._

I snuggled closer to the soft fabric behind me, a small smile forming on my face at the thought of Ed searching up and down Central, just for me. Alright, so maybe Envy was my favorite character, but I dare you to find any female fan of FMA who doesn't have a bit of a crush on Edward. Envy wasn't as…soft…as Ed could be. The kind of tenderness with which he handled Winry was heartbreakingly sweet. I felt my eyes close and I brought the pointer finger of my right hand to my lip, a habit I've had since I was young.

Maybe he was worried about me. I mean, I was an important asset to them, since I knew the plotline, but maybe I was more than that. A friend, even. Probably not to Roy, the business-like man that he was, at least not yet, but the thought of someone caring cheered me up and left a warm feeling in my chest. _I wish this car would go faster_, was my last thought before I drifted off into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

~"~

Mom was nudging me gently on the shoulder. I had probably slept through my alarm again, and the thought was somehow a bit funny to me. She'd probably been calling my name from the doorway for a while before figuring out that I was not waking up any time soon. I wasn't fully awake yet, but I could feel something fuzzy on my face. Stupid cat was sleeping on my head, wasn't she? I lifted up one arm to wave her away when my hand caught on what felt like human hair.

"-Peyton?"

"Mom," Painfully, slowly, I opened one of my eyes to squint at the blurry figure. "You…need to shave."

"…Miss Peyton, please wake up. We're here."

Oh. Armstrong. Right. I managed to drag my celestial being's lazy ass back to my brain, my vision not clearing yet because, as I now noticed, my glasses were askew and about where my eyebrows were. I sat up, rubbing my head and pulling them back down to where they were supposed to be. Armstrong was standing next to the open car door, holding out a gloved hand to help me up.

Less than gracefully, I managed to get out of the car, only slightly maiming my ankle where it had caught on the side of the door, and straightened, popping my back with a groan. "How long was I out?" I asked, rubbing the back of my neck, which was sore from my crouched position.

"Not long. But we've arrived at the hotel where Edward Elric has been staying." Wow. Surprisingly normal conversation for someone like Armstrong.

"Oh, yeah, cool," I said, pulling up the hood of the small brown cloak he'd loaned me for a 'disguise'. Apparently, it had been for some officer's kid's play that he'd gone to, and the kid had accidentally left it with him. Eh, I knew better than to complain, and besides, it did the trick. I started to walk towards the door of the hotel, when I realized that Armstrong wasn't with me.

"Hey, you coming?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at his still form.

He didn't say anything; he was looking down at the ground with his shoulders shaking. Not for the first time, I wondered if he was actually Envy and whether I should run now or try to fend him off. Either was laughable, really, but you can't say I didn't try. Finally, he looked up, fully laughing now and almost bringing himself to tears.

"WHY, THIS IS EXCITING!" He roared, rushing towards me to grasp me in another of his famous hugs. "Escaping from such a horrific fate, all to assist one another in your quests to get home! I am glad to be part of such a feat!"

"Yeah, fantastic," I hacked, trying to wriggle out of his grip. "Let's go."

It took a few more minutes of shouting and squeezing until he finally let go and began walking into the building. I followed a short distance behind him, rubbing my sides ruefully. He was a sweet guy, and he meant well, but I could see how he did so well in the military. He could always just hug his enemies to death.

~"~

"What do you mean he just checked out?!" It took a lot of self-restraint to keep my voice from squeaking and rising in volume. The bored-looking clerk behind the desk glanced up at me from underneath an unbrushed mop of ash blond hair with dull blue eyes. It was obvious that he wasn't used to being harassed by a weird-nerd-looking girl wearing a costume cloak. Tough. I was two seconds from reaching over the counter and harassing him more violently, to be honest.

"He left about half an hour ago," he repeated, meeting my glare with a thinly disguised look of disdain.

"Did he have anyone with him?" Armstrong asked, reminding both of us that if something started, he could easily break us up, and none too gently, either.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that, sir."

"Why. The Hell. Not." I growled, eyeballing him.

"Because," he huffed, looking down his nose at me now. "It's none of your business, and our customer's private goings and comings are none of your concern. In fact, I'm not supposed to tell you that he left at all, even if your friend is military."

"How about if I kick your skinny ass? Then will it be my concern, punk?" Looking back, he probably had a good four years on me, but guys never expect how crazy girl fights are, and I might just have enough penned up anger and stress to make good on my words.

"Peyton," Armstrong interrupted, "Let's just think of where he might be and find him. Central isn't too big, after all. He can't have gone far."

I looked up to meet his gaze, seeing that he was utterly serious, and nodded once, grimacing at the boy behind the counter. "You got lucky this time. Next time I find myself in this world, I'm bringing a can of whooping-your-ass with me."

He snorted, as Armstrong led me out of the lobby. "Have a nice day, ma'am," he called back, dripping sarcasm.

"Now, where do you think he could have gone?"

"Hm? Oh, Ed. Right," I absentmindedly nibbled on my thumb nail without biting the nail off, another small habit of mine. "The only place I can think of is Central Command, since he'd be looking for me, right?"

Instantly, Armstrong's face fell, and an expression of worry formed itself from underneath his bushy brows. I squinted up at him, my head slightly cocked. What? What did I say?

"What's the matter?" I asked.

"Did you not say that the homunculi were at Central Command? What would happen if Edward Elric happened upon them?"

I felt my eyes widen as I realized he was right. "Shit…"I breathed, the word catching in my breath. Ed, looking for me since I'd disappeared, wandering right into the hands of two pissed homunculi. And they knew he was with me.

I flung the door open of the car and threw myself into it. "Armstrong! Start this thing up, we've gotta go rescue us some shrimp!"

"Of course!" he rumbled, jumping into the car himself and starting up the engine. I pulled the door shut behind me and pulled my seatbelt on. A good thing, too, because as soon as he got it up and running, the car took off like a shot, reinforcing my original idea of it being an animal. A cheetah, perhaps, if a cheetah ever dodged between traffic so desperately.

_Hang in there, Ed,_ I thought ferociously._ If you so much as harm a hair on his head, Envy, I'll….I'll…I'll show you the lame death of yours in Brotherhood!_

Y'know, so long as he didn't figure out how to kill me permanently. We'll burn that bridge when we get to it.

_**A/N: H-hey, guys. How's it goin'? Okay, yeah, I know this is way overdue. *hangs head in shame* Moving across the world and school starting just sort of threw the whole thing off. Fear not, though! I have figured out a way of making PLOT happen! **_

_**Yay, me! **_

_**Also, just, y'know, FYI, this fanfiction has almost reached 2K views. Guys. ZOMG. Seriously. **_


	16. You Just Missed Her

~*Pride (Selim Bradley)*~

As I followed my decrepit old butler to Wrath's office, I spared a few thoughts about girl I'd just encountered. She didn't belong here. I had never seen her before, and there wasn't much that got past me. I knew I would have to ask someone about her, since my shadows were already focused on keeping an eye on the more important sacrifices of Riza Hawkeye and Roy Mustang. But there was a sort of feeling that she gave off that instantly told me something was wrong. I turned my head forward and grimaced at the balding head of the butler. I didn't remember his name, nor did I need to. If it weren't for the fact that he thought I was innocently delivering a luncheon to my 'father', I might have been able to question the girl further.

And that was another thing that bothered me. She was afraid of me. I knew that look; that horrified expression that crossed her face. There wasn't any reason to be afraid of an adorable little boy like me, now was there? Unless, of course, you knew something you shouldn't.

"Master Selim," the confounded butler interrupted my thoughts, "We are here."

"Yes, thank you," I said as politely as I could, the mask sliding easily into place. It was almost too easy to become 'Selim Bradley'. There wasn't a single person yet who'd seen through it, and I could guess it was because I pulled it off so masterfully. The butler bowed and opened the door for me, standing outside of it to wait until I got back. Stepping inside, I felt another presence besides Wrath and I. It was Envy, the Jealous, not even bothering to be disguised from what he called his 'cute' form. As the door closed behind me, the butler luckily in just the right angle not to witness what was really going on, both he and Wrath turned to look at me.

"What's going on here?" I hissed icily, my anger directed towards Envy. "You're not even shape-shifted, you half-clothed twit. Do you know what could happen if a human saw you here?"

Envy hesitated for a moment, his stance forcibly relaxing slightly from the position that he had been in before they'd noticed me; leaning over Wrath's desk with both hands planted on it and looking Wrath in the eye. "Nobody comes into the office without knocking," he defended warily and almost looking like he was sulking. What a pathetic child compared to me, really. "We've got a problem."

"'We'?" Wrath repeated, standing and fixing his gloves rather absentmindedly, as though he were bored of the conversation, "_You_ were charged with keeping her locked up. Don't try to bring blame on the rest of us."

"Who?" I asked suspiciously.

Again, Envy's eyes flicked towards mine and he shifted uncomfortably. "A girl," he mumbled, averting his gaze. "A human girl. Father wants her. She escaped earlier."

I felt a twinge of disdainful amusement mingle with anger inside me. "You let a human girl escape? What have you done to get her back?" _This would never have happened if I were in charge,_ I thought bitterly. _Idiots can't manage to keep even a measly human under watch._

"Hey, I didn't _let_ her escape. She knows the underground tunnels almost as well as we do. And as I was just saying, there's no question of where she is. She's with Fullmetal pipsqueak and friends," he made a face. "I can't go after all of them by myself. I was just about to ask if I could borrow Gluttony or something."

I stared at him for a moment, a realization crossing my mind. That girl. She must have been it. "Blonde hair," I said, narrowing my eyes. "And about your height." It was more of a statement than a question, as I was silently hoping he wouldn't confirm what I'd thought.

He blinked a few times in surprise. "Yeah. How-"

"None of your business," I growled. So that was it. I should have acted on my instinct, rather than falling in line behind the idiotic tether to my role as the Fuhrer's son. But regretting my lack of action now wouldn't do anything productive. "Are we just going to run in and try to capture the whole lot?"

"That will not be necessary," Wrath spoke up. He was standing in front of the window, his hands clasped behind his back.

"What are you blathering about?"

"See for yourself," he stood aside and gestured towards the window that viewed the front courtyard of Central Command. I didn't budge, whereas Envy strode over and looked out the window obediently.

He inhaled sharply, his face scrunching up in hatred. "Dammit. They're here." He inclined his head over his shoulder, addressing me. "Fullmetal, his brother, and a handful of other people are down there."

"Why would they be here?" I pushed him aside, needing to see it with my own eyes. Sure enough, there was a ragtag little group making their way to the entrance, their strides determined. Leading the pack, of course, was Edward Elric. _That meddlesome brat. _I fumed inside my head. Why couldn't he just sit still and patiently like the others?

"If I might make a suggestion," Wrath began, his tone indicating that it didn't make a difference whether or not we wanted to hear his advice. "I highly doubt they're here for revenge."

"So?"

"Why else would they be here, walking right into what they know is full of their enemies, if not on a rescue mission of sorts? They obviously have some sort of plan to rescue the girl, who isn't here in the first place. And if we capture them first, then-"

"-Then we can get the girl _and_ destroy any of the others who might be helping the Elrics meddle in our plans," I finished. A small, triumphant smile crossed my face. Two birds with one stone. And just think of how Father would reward us.

Behind me, from his perch atop Wrath's desk, I heard Envy chuckle. "This sounds like fun already," he said, "I can't wait to see how it'll end."

For once, I had to agree with him.

_**A/N: That, my friends, is how you're meant to react to the first chapter. *wink, wink* The views are still going up. Thank you! I'm trying to execute a 9000 mph right turn here, so do forgive me if it really isn't up to snuff. **_

_**This chapter is, again, horribly short. I think it barely reached 1000 words. _ _lll **_

_**I really hated the idea of using Selim as the viewpoint, (I don't want to be inside his slimy, creepy little mind. TT^TT), but I hate the idea of using a character's viewpoint twice. I dunno, it's just a sort of broad spectrum that I want you guys to see. I want you to see EVERYTHING, rather than just assuming that it happened. I got my iPod fixed, so I was all like, 'ZOMG LETS DO EVERYTHING!1111!ONE!'. **_

_**8DD**_

_**First rule of fanfiction, you do not forget to leave a comment.**_

_**Second rule of fanfiction, YOU DO NOT FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT.**_

_**(His name was William Bentham./shot for too many Fight Club references)**_


	17. Homunculus HQ pt 1

As soon as Armstrong stopped the car, I'd flung myself out of it, planning on…er…planning…

I stopped in my tracks as suddenly as if I'd stepped into a giant puddle of gorilla glue. What was I planning to do, anyway? I looked up at the building in front of me, the place where I'd met some of my most favorite characters ever, the place where I'd seen numerous plot devices happen, where the huge, epic finale had taken place. Central Command. I could almost swear that it looked back, watching me as if to say, 'Come at me, bro'.

"Miss Peyton?" Armstrong inquired, staring at me worriedly. I could just barely catch the side of his face in my peripheral vision.

I didn't answer. There wasn't anything I could say. What I needed now was a plan. And when I said 'now', I meant _right now_. But…I was up against something crazy, here. Seven homunculi, since this was a piece of the storyline in which all of them were still intact; although I knew Greed was still hiding out with his chimera pals. That, of course, only helped to lessen the threat to 6 homunculi who wanted me dead. At least one of whom I'd managed to piss off on a personal level.

Dazedly, I cast my feet a quick glance. My once white socks were now a dismal tan color, from having been running around without shoes for the past hour or so. I wondered if Envy was holding onto them for me. He probably was, that smug little bastard. Just waiting for the perfect moment when he could fling them at me triumphantly, having successfully caught me, _again_.

"Miss?" Again, Armstrong's voice registered in what was my blurred method of thinking. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I replied absentmindedly, still staring at my feet. What the hell was I going to do? It was kind of obvious that Ed and friends weren't just hanging around here. Unhindered by homunculi, they would've been in there 30 minutes, tops; enough to figure out that I'd already left. However, adding the sins to the mix made it so that there was only one possible option. They were obviously taken. The next question for me to ask my brilliant self was what I was going to do with all those variables in place.

Give myself up? They'd just see that as a double win. Why would they let the others go? Homuculi: 2. Forces of Somewhat Good: 0.

Threaten them? With what, exactly? Spoilers? A small grin crossed my face as I thought of Father cowering in fear. "No, please, don't tell me what happens next! I haven't gotten past that episode yet!" Besides, that's what they wanted from me anyways, right?

_Damn._ I chewed on my thumbnail, feeling as though any minute my feet were going to start doing some weird shit underneath my unwavering gaze. The only thing I could think of would be an all-out attack. Offensive and whatever. Like, if I could just grab every good guy in this universe and then be all awesome together and defeat them with the power of teamwork or something, then maybe it could work. But did I really have the time to-

"Excuse me."

A new voice interrupted my thoughts, snagging my attention because it was aimed directly at me. I looked up, seeing one of the military members standing there. He wasn't canon; just one of the faceless background characters, but from the look on his face, he meant business.

"Miss Peyton, correct?"

I nodded once, warily. Instantly, I regretted it, since the military was the headquarters of the bad guys and I'd just positively identified myself as a target, but my conscience dully muttered something about being screwed anyways if I had so much as toed the line fifty feet from the entrance. She was probably right, as usual, but it wouldn't have hurt her, I noted sarcastically, to have been a little less dismal about it.

"Colonel Roy Mustang wishes to see you in his office." Armstrong moved forward, but the soldier held up an arm. "Alone, sir."

I started up my brain's engines again, half wondering if smoke was coming out of my ears from all this thinking that I'd been doing lately. If it was Roy, then I didn't really see a problem, and he could be an important asset to the Giant Big Huge Bad vs. Good Ultimate Showdown Experience Spectacular that was probably just around the corner. Then again, so could Armstrong. A flashback to one of the episodes popped up in my mind; the one where he'd taken down Sloth, with help from his sister. But if I was to say 'no', I had the feeling that I'd be hoisted over this guy's shoulder and taken to Roy whether I wanted to or not. I focused again, turning to Armstrong and nodding once.

"I'll see you later, then, Armstrong," I said, trying to put as much meaning into my tone as possible. _Don't go anywhere. Keep a lookout for us. Stay out of trouble._

He hesitated before nodding in reply. "Indeed, Miss Peyton. Later."

With that, the military escort put a firm hand on my shoulder and began walking into the building, leading me smoothly through the building as though he knew it better than the back of his own hand. Which, come to think of it, he probably did. Didn't most of these people have this place memorized from the nearing obnoxious amounts of time they spent here?

When we reached Roy's office, the man knocked once, then opened it, saluting sharply and standing by the door on the inside, waiting for me to walk in before allowing it to shut behind us. Roy was sitting at his desk, his elbows propped up in his trademark position, his eyes heavily dark. Something about his expression sent warning chills up my spine. What kind of awful lecture did he have in store for me? All I'd done was be absent for the chat we'd scheduled, gotten kidnapped by the homunculi, pissed off at least one of them, and lost one of the most valuable alchemists in his arsenal…Then again, this might just be my end.

"Hey," I greeted, not even attempting a smile, my arms crossed against my chest loosely.

"Where were you?"

"Erm…caught up. In stuff. You know how it is." I couldn't say much more, feeling the soldier behind me and his watchful gaze digging into my back. The military was dangerous, and I couldn't afford to trust any of them.

Roy stood up and walked casually over to me. From the few feet in between us, I could see how much taller than me he really was, as opposed to being in a desk all the time. I also had a better, close-up view of the bottomless pits of eyes he possessed, and was even more disturbed by what I saw there. _Danger_, they read clearly. But not necessarily for me, right?

"Let's go." He inclined his head towards the soldier, meeting eyes with him briefly behind my back. "I need you to come with me somewhere."

I stared at him for a moment, debating whether or not I should run now and hope for the best or just follow along. A quick glance from him made up my mind for me and I wordlessly nodded, turning to walk beside him and follow the escort back out the door and down the hallway. He was a small ways in front of us, not even bothering to look back, so I stole a quick look at Roy again.

He looked haggard, but determined. Like he was losing a chess game while trying to figure out how to pull it back just in time. Not exactly a reassuring sight, really. I was both slightly afraid of him for that 'I'm-concentrating-deeply' look on his face and for what that might imply.

"Roy," I hissed quietly, as close to a simple exhale as I could possibly get. In response, his eyes flicked towards me, then back to the front. He was keeping a pretty close eye on the escort; probably for security reasons.

"The hell is this?" I protested. "Where are we going?"

"Shut up," he breathed, not angrily but with something akin to impatience. "Just keep walking."

We turned down a hallway that seemed vaguely familiar to me, but then again, all the halls in this place looked the same. I turned my head back down to my feet, glaring at them. What on earth was wrong with him? Why were we following this guy? I didn't have _time_ for this, goddammit, I had me some shrimp to save. Who knows what kind of horrible torture Envy might be inflicting on him at this very moment? Up in chains on the wall, his shirt-Stop that. I took a breath and instead focused on the back of the soldier, chastising my conscience internally for the bondage thoughts. _What did I say about the yaoi?_ I growled at her_. Can't be helped_, she mocked, smirking.

Before I could continue my possibly psychotic discussion with myself, the escort had led us to one of the elevators, gesturing for us to get in. Roy walked in first, then I followed, and, lastly, the soldier, who punched a random button that I didn't see because of his arm and then leaned back against the handrail in the elevator.

_He looks awfully comfortable for being in the presence of one of his superiors_. The thought had barely blossomed in my head before he spoke.

"If I'd known that you'd be this easy to catch, I would've just dangled the puny alchemist from the roof," he commented, his tone dripping sarcasm and disdain.

"Envy." I said flatly. "Why am I not surprised?"

Roy said nothing, his eyes seemingly trained on the homunculus, who, I noticed, didn't spare him so much as a glance; too caught up in gloating over me. The familiar strands of red lighting wound their way down his body, transforming him to his usual form, tickling my cheek with his hair from the small space we were contained in. _Small space_, my conscience breathed in my ear. _Little elevator, Envy and Roy, and you're in the middle, too-_

"STFU," I mumbled under my breath.

Envy cocked his head, grinning. "Hn? You say something?"

"Not to you."

Suddenly, the elevator jerked to a stop, the doors sliding open to reveal the dank sewer that I'd just ran away from. The smell never got any better, I could tell you that, although I was glad that I didn't have to suck in giant breaths of the hideous smell that was like someone died, and was promptly left out in the sun to putrefy, and then tossed down here to decay further. Although that probably wasn't that far from the truth. Envy stepped out, turning and bowing mockingly to indicate that we should follow.

I grimaced at him, allowing my full disgust to show, looking back to see if Roy was coming. He was, his eyes still trained on Envy. _I wonder…I told him about Envy and Hughes, didn't I?_ Maybe that was why? It made sense, really, especially if Envy had been with Roy before he'd gone to get me. Don't tell me he rubbed it in Roy's face. That was signing a premature death warrant right there.

We entered the huge cavern that was what I liked to affectionately call Homunculus HQ, and immediately caught sight of a decidedly captured group, bound with their arms behind their backs, kneeling on the floor and watched over by Lust. Ed, Al, Ling, and William. _Poor William,_ I thought with a pang. _I really shouldn't have gotten him involved with this whole mess._ He didn't look hurt, nor did any of the others, which sent a huge wave of relief washing over me; regardless of the fact that just because they weren't hurt now, it didn't mean they wouldn't be later.

"You must be this Peyton that I've heard so much about," Father mused aloud from his seat in the middle of the room, his head propped up on his hand. Behind me, Roy was being led to join the others by Envy, who flashed me a killer's grin as he passed by.

It took an enormous amount of self-control not to stick my tongue out at him. "Yes, sir. That's me."

"Why did you run away from my facility?" Father asked, his tone carrying a hint of genuine curiosity. That was something that, as a fangirl of the show, I had hated about him and as an aspiring author, loved about him. He was supposed to be the main antagonist, but there were moments where he was almost childlike. He was too _unpredictable_, too difficult to read. "My children weren't mistreating you, were they?"

"No. I just don't take too kindly to being in a dungeon. Not so great for the allergies," I replied, trying to keep a light tone.

"Where are your shoes?"

"Left 'em here."

"Would you like them back?"

I shrugged, inwardly tensed like a coil. This guy was insane; that, at least, I'd managed to remember. At any moment, he could snap and suddenly order me to die in any variety of hideous ways. Probably at the hands of Envy. _Damnable old loon_, I cursed inside my head.

_ Smack!_

My shoes were tossed at my head from across the room, the force enough to jerk my head forward and hard enough that I could feel my skull throbbing from the impact. I didn't have to turn around to know who'd thrown them. "Still holding a grudge from that one time I outsmarted you, huh?" I grumbled under my breath, rubbing the back of my head.

"Bet your life on it," Envy hissed from behind my left ear, closer than I'd estimated him to be. The amount of pure malice in his scratchy voice sent off nuclear alarms inside my head, but I knew I couldn't possibly react in any sort of way that would give him his satisfaction. Instead, I bent over and began the process of putting my shoes on; not bothering to retie the laces.

"Aren't you going to thank me?" Father asked, folding his hands atop one another and straightening.

"Thanks."

He was silent for a moment, watching me closely as though he were trying to figure out the very secrets of my soul. I wondered again if he was going to snap on me. Was he going to kill me? Or even worse, kill the others? What would happen if I got the same treatment as Greed did just before Ling became the new Greed? Or, really, Greeling. I chuckled slightly, casting my eyes to the side. Though I was trying to keep myself from panicking or going completely dark with depression and hopelessness, there was still a hard core in the middle of my chest that refused to move, no matter how hard I swallowed;

I had no idea where the plot was going, now. This was completely uncharted territory. I was, officially, a character in this insane asylum of a show.

_**A/N: Hey, hey, hey, y'all stayin' outta mah shed? **_

_**Pony references aside, um…yeah. PLOT is happening here. But, you see, it is past my bedtime on a school night, and it's a wonder nobody's caught me yet so I'm going to take what I can get and post it. Besides, without the author's note, this entire thing is five pages. **_

_**Five. Pages.**_

_**2000 words. **_

_**Yeah, so I'm splitting it up. Uhmm…to be completely honest, I forgot that Peyton had left her shoes down there. Whoops. That's why, in case you OCD people out there had noticed, there is no mention whatsoever about her bare, socked feet. (Socked is a word, hm? Probably doesn't mean what I'm using it for, does it?)**_

_**Anyways, as always, GOODNIGHT, ENGLAND, WE LOVE YOU! And review. :3**_

_**(But I don't know what to do with those tossed salads and scrambled eggs~ They're callin' again.)**_


	18. Homunculus HQ pt 2

~*Lust*~

I watched as the little girl spoke with Father, as though she wasn't afraid at all. _I_ could see right through her ruse; the way her eyes gleamed with defiance of her own human reactions, the way her shoulders were set back and tense. It was amusing to me, although I might have liked her better if she wasn't so homely. Now, that Mustang, who was bound hand and foot at my feet…_He_ was a man I'd like to get my claws into. His attention was focused on Envy; I guessed that the little girl had told him all about his friend and the 'accident'. Pity.

"I'm guessing that you're quite smart, Miss Peyton," Father began after a long silence, "Not everyone can escape from here like you did."

"Thank you." There it was again. I felt the edge of my mouth quirk up in a tiny smirk. Her eyes had glazed over, her expression seemingly bored and full of decorum, but I had detected a flash of thought in them, much like seeing the gears behind a clock. She was thinking, and hard.

"It makes me wonder. Why come back?"

I heard Envy from the other side of the prisoners grumble something about stupidity under his breath. I glanced over, chuckling at his face like thunder and crossed arms. Silly little boy, it was his fault she'd escaped, anyway. Either she was smart or he wasn't, and neither was an appealing thought to his oversized ego.

"Friends." I shook my head condescendingly at her simple answer. Of_ course, _that's what the majority of humans would say. Such a weak race, each ready to throw away their lives for a meager thing called 'friendship'. What were friends, anyway? Inevitable betrayals just waiting to happen. It was a wonder that they hadn't died out yet.

"Hmm. Do you mind introducing me?"

"You already know them, don't you? At least the majority of them. There isn't much that goes on 'upstairs' that you don't know about."

"And how do you know that?"

_Booorrinng_. I examined my nails, peeling off dried blood from one. This verbal wordplay wasn't any fun, at least not when I wasn't involved. Now, if we could kill one or two of them, then I might be interested. Especially if it was that Colonel. I glanced over at him, still glaring determinedly at Envy. I had to smother a laugh at his expression. He was actually trying to figure out how to_ kill_ him, wasn't he? How absolutely endearing.

"I asked you a question. Don't be rude. Answer." At the tone of Father's voice, I perked up immediately. This might end pretty well after all. The only way it could better would be if Father would let me kill that annoying, bratty girl. Sadly, I didn't see that happening; not quite yet.

"I know things," was the vague reply. The girl shifted her weight, looking off to the side at nothing in particular. Her casual pose was, in my opinion, betraying her true feelings even more. And that look on her face was only antagonizing Father. G_ive it a little longer._

"Things that you shouldn't know?" Father's eyes flitted to mine, sending me a silent message with it. I felt my nails burn with anticipation; he wanted me to dispose of her little friends one-by-one if she didn't cooperate. Though I couldn't kill Edward or Colonel Mustang, the Xingese person and the private were fair game._ They_ weren't sacrifices.

"Things that I've learned." Again, she became more agitated as he prodded closer to the truth.

"I see." He was quiet for a moment before crooking a finger in my direction. Instantly, I grabbed the closer of the two executable prisoners, the Xingese guy, and grew my nail until it was about twice the size of his neck, sliding it against the vulnerable skin there. He didn't squirm, his eyes containing unveiled hatred and deep thought. So he knew he had some sort of experience with hostage situations; if he move so much as an inch, he was gone. Impressive, but then, wasn't this guy a prince or something? He probably had more enemies than we had allies.

The girl's breathing sharpened as she inclined her head towards me, an expression of pain crossing her features before she turned back to Father, determination and anger boiling in those pretty little eyes. "What do you want from me?"

"First thing's first. Where do you know all this from?"

"My world."

Oh. She was _that_ girl. Rumors had been spread about a crazy girl who'd shown up the day before yesterday, babbling something about 'her world'. I'd heard all about it the last time I was out and about. The military hushed it up pretty quickly, which should've pointed directly to Roy Mustang in the first place, but we hadn't figured that she would be such a problem so soon.

"Your world?"

"Yeah."

"Then tell me, if what I've heard is true, where is my dear Greed? I do miss him so."

_Greed_. My upper lip twisted into an unladylike frown. That bastard had run out on Father and us._ Us, _the only family that pathetic wretch could ever hope to have. Maybe now, he'd be taught a lesson. So long as this girl could actually tell us what we wanted to know.

"And if I don't tell?"

"I don't think you have to ask that question. I do not believe that you are unintelligent as that."

She hesistated, her emotions warring, before replying quietly. "Devil's Nest. He's hanging out with a bunch of chimeras underground. Where Ed's teacher lives; I think Resembool. Now let Ling go."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. He's seen too much."

With that, Father signaled me again. Almost simultaneously, I pushed the boy forward and jammed my two forefinger's nails right through the back of his head; cracking his skull and killing him instantly. I could feel, rather than hear, the sharp inhale of breath, and then the soft exhale as he lost his grip on the last bit of air he'd ever use. I allowed myself a small grin as I withdrew, watching as the tips of my nails disappeared from between his eyes. The girl's eyes went wide and a scream tore from her throat, sending delicious shivers up my spine from the raw _emotion_ in it.

"LING!"

_**A/N: How to make the plot a tad bit more interesting, according to me; kill (yourfamilykillyourfamily) one of the main canons. Can I write as Lust? **_

_**No. **_

_**Am I running out of characters?**_

_**Yes. **_

_**I'm gonna have to reuse some of their viewpoints. _ _lll I've been avoiding it since this whole thing started, but with the new PLOT in place, there's no way that I can't; the story'll take too long for that kind of thing. **_

_**BTW: 3K views. Seriously. **_

_**Fans. **_

_**Wat r U doin'?**_

_**Fans. **_

_**[Don't] Stahp. **_

_**Give me a sign! Let me know! How badly this fanfic sucked! **_


	19. The One With Borderline Sue Activity

"_LING!"_

I watched, as though in slow motion, as the Xingese prince's lifeless body fell to the floor, accompanied by a rather sad 'thud' sound. I started running towards him, though there wasn't any conscious thought on my part. Just an incessant screaming that could have been inside of my brain or outside of it; I'd never know. Something, _someone,_ was holding me back, grasping my arms and pulling them painfully backwards in a way that they were not meant to go. But I couldn't help myself. His name was in my throat, shoving against my heart and blocking any rational thought. _I killed him,_ a small part of my head chanted furiously. _I killed him, I killed Ling. _

I screamed again, incoherently, tears blurring my vision and my throat raw. Ed was shouting, too, yelling at Father, I later realized. At the moment, all I could see was the blood and that ridiculously bright yellow jacket. Father mumbled something and the person grabbing me lifted me right off my feet and started dragging me away from the scene. I started squirming, choking on Ling's name and losing my voice. Lust indifferently reached over and smacked Ed across his face, hard enough so that I could hear it from the corner we turned, and said something about respect.

"Ling," I managed to croak hoarsely, my strength fading. I tried one more time to wriggle away from the homunculus in whose grasp I was currently, but of course got nowhere.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Envy chuckled darkly from just behind my ear, his arms wrapped tightly around my waist, pinning my own arms to my sides effectively. He paused for a moment to do that awful, self-important little laugh of his before continuing. "It makes me want to kill the Fullmetal brat. You're pretty close to him, right? What kind of a noise would you make then?"

"Ling," was my whimpered reply, as I stared off into the general direction of the main room, even as I was being taking somewhere else. His little jibes didn't register at all. Instead, all I heard was the same sentences that spun around in my mind like a demented merry-go-round. _I killed Ling. I killed him. He's dead. It's all my fault. I killed Ling._

I was thrown backwards, suddenly, into another little, dim cell like the one I'd been in before. My head snapped against the wall, sending sharp pains down my neck and a dull, throbbing pain in the back of my skull, but all I did by way of a reaction was curl up, my knees brought up to my chest. I wanted to disappear. I wanted to go home. But neither was happening.

There was a 'thump' sound in front of me, splattering liquid on my exposed arms. I didn't look. I already knew what they were doing.

"You guys have fun," Envy said from the doorway. "We'll deal with you later. Be ready to answer some questions._ Truthfully_, this time." Again, he paused. "Actually, I'd prefer that you didn't. How do you feel about me slicing open the private's face next time?" He laughed to himself, then walked out and shut the door behind him.

It was quiet, here in my own private little hell. The only sound I could hear was my pathetic sniffles and occasionally a small sob. I didn't know what was happening outside. But I could definitely understand what was going on in here. They wanted me to feel bad. To live with Ling's corpse until it either drove me to madness or broke me completely. Maybe they could even teach me alchemy and make me open a portal, turning me into a sacrifice. Or use me to guilt-trip Ed into doing it. It didn't matter.

"I'm sorry, Ling," I whispered, staring at the corner of the room, to my left, tears still rolling down my cheeks. "You weren't supposed to die. You were supposed to live. Live and…and…be a great emperor. Be the best ever. And marry Lan Fan. And have gorgeous little kids. I'm sorry."

He didn't say anything back, so I pursued my own train of thought. "I mean, it's my fault. You weren't supposed to get into this for a while. You'd become Greed for a little bit, and then help take down Wrath and stuff. But…" I sniffled again, rubbing my face on my arm. "You weren't supposed to _die_."

I sighed, leaning my head back and closing my eyes. I was tired, but I couldn't sleep, not with…not without finding a way to make this better. _Maybe I could bring him back,_ a piece of me whispered.

"Stupid. The dead can't come back," I muttered to myself. Not even here, as demonstrated by a whole cluster of episodes where Ed and Al find out that the thing they'd revived wasn't even their mother; just some dead something-or-other with Al's soul temporarily inside it.

On a whim, still ignoring Ling's corpse, I took out the pocket watch from beneath my shirt. My fingers glided over it, caressing the textured surface of the intricate details. It was a bit heavy, like it held something inside of it that wasn't supposed to go there. Maybe…maybe my heart was in it? Absentmindedly, my other hand came up to the half-link that disappeared into my chest. It didn't really make any sense, but hey, who knows. What I'd like to know was whether it could be destroyed. Could it smash? Could you burn it? Would I die with it?

"What do you think, Ling?" I addressed the ceiling. When he didn't answer again, I frowned, furrowing my brow and looking up at my forehead. "I'd give it to you, you know. My heart. I mean, I don't know what would happen. Or if either of us would survive. You're just so darn loveable."

Finally, for the first time since the incident, I slowly dropped my eyes to the floor. He was lying there, in a small puddle of his own blood, which was quickly darkening. His hair was still pulled back into its usual spiky ponytail, one arm across his back and another cupped near his face; almost as though he were sleeping. _He's so pale_, was my first thought. I stared at the back of his head, half expecting his stomach to growl or some Ling-ish something like that. Despite the fact that there were _two freakin' holes in his head_. A stupid impulse, or perhaps a small taste of insanity, shot through me, and I glanced down at my pocket watch, then scooted closer.

"Here," I said softly, grabbing one of his hands and placing the watch in it. "Here, have it. C'mon, Ling. You need to live." It was silent. So quiet I could hear my heartbeats. One...two…three…

"Dammit, Ling. Take it," I growled , frustrated. It was odd how much easier it was to be mad at your dead friends, rather than sad. Although part of me wondered at my ability to say that and worried for my sanity, most of me was just tired of this _stupid bullshit_. It was always something, wasn't it? At home, it was the Amanda Todd thing and the skittles, and the bullying, and here, it was the dying and the whining about whatever. _I. Am. Sick of this _was the thought that ran through my head. "Take the goddammed watch, Ling."

I closed his fingers around it with a bit of difficulty, since his body was already going through rigor mortis. His eyes were squinted, and I couldn't tell whether or not they were open, but it was obvious that he wasn't alive. I don't think I realized by then how stupid I looked, crouching beside a dead guy and insisting that he hold my shirt-chest-pocket-watch.

"Come _on_," My hand slipped slightly, and hit the button on the side, eliciting a final-sounding _click_ from the watch. Immediately, I felt a sort of electricity in the air. Confused, I tried to pull the watch back, but it seemed glued to Ling's hand. It was like shocking one's finger on a doorknob. Only it just kept going again and again, pulsating in my chest and reverberating through my body. I managed to grab the watch and hit the button again, feeling as the electricity died down, leaving me back in the dark, dank cell with _Eu de Dead Prince._

"…'Kay." I raised an eyebrow at the watch suspiciously. "What did I just do?"

At that moment, I could've sworn that I'd heard something, but, with a quick glance at Ling, I could see that he was still fairly dead. I stood up, walking over to the door and looking out of the small, barred window in it. Had I transported us somewhere else? Because that would be, not gonna lie, really cool.

…Nope. Still the same scenery; grey and dismal. Fantastic. I frowned and sighed, glaring down at my pocket-sized puzzle.

"Maybe I get some sort of malevolent spirit? Hey, hey, you. In there. Letting you know, I don't do leather pants. Mkay?" I shook it once, leaning my head towards it and listening intently before continuing. "And I don't do the spikey hair with different colors, nor am I British. Or gay. And I don't have any sort of rage that comes from a specific area."

"What's British?"

I froze. So I'd finally gone completely insane. Lovely. _It...it couldn't be._

Slowly, I inclined my head over my shoulder, peering wide-eyed at the now fully functional Ling Yao, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor and rubbing his head, grimacing. He looked up, making eye contact with me, and frowned.

"Where are we, anyways? And how'd I get in here?" He asked.

"LING." I breathed, accusingly. "Why aren't you dead?"

He blinked at me, cocking his head and raising an eyebrow. "Ah…I'm sorry for being alive?"

I couldn't move. _Ling. __Ling__. He's alive_. My eyes filled up with new tears, at the sight of which Ling started in surprise and confusion. But before he could say anything on the subject, I'd flung myself at him, hugging him tight, even despite of the fact that I hadn't known the guy for more than a few days. I am embarrassed to say that I refused to let go of him for several moments, blubbering about being sorry for killing him and happy that he was alive.

"Wait. Slow down." He peeled my arms off to look me in the eye. "What do you mean, you killed me?"

I sniffled once, then rubbed the side of my nose and looking away miserably. "I-I killed you. I said too much and they killed you. I'm so sorry, Ling. I didn't-"

"You didn't kill me. I'm alive," he interrupted, holding out a handkerchief that he'd managed to produce from his jacket magically. I accepted it gratefully and blew my nose, hard. "Who's 'they'?"

"But you _were_ dead!" I protested weakly, rubbing the soft fabric between my fingers. "I…I dunno how but I brought you back with my pocket-watch. Lust killed you. And-and I thought y-you were dead for real."

"That doesn't answer my question."

I took a deep breath. _Get yourself back together. Stop this sobbing crap_. My conscience was back, and furious with me for crying like this. _You can't really blame me_, I thought at her. _I'm tired. And Ling died. _"'They' are the homunculi. Don't you remember?"

"There are homunculi in this country?"

I stared at him. "Yeah. The ones that took you down here. Couldn't you feel their Qi?"

He thought for a moment, disregarding my incredulous look. "I have been feeling a strange prescence. But I don't know what you're talking about 'the ones who took me down here'. I was just in Ed's hotel room, and then I woke up here, with you. No one took me anywhere."

"You don't remember." My eyes widened. What…what the _hell _did I do?! I gave back Ling's life, but took away his memories? Pardon the French, but how the fahkq does that work?

A thought occurred to me, then, that sent a shiver shimmying up my spine. I'd said before that I would give Ling my heart if he needed it. But what if giving him back his life took away from mine? Had I just shaved off a year or two of my own life? _Goddammit._ This watch thing was just throwing _everything_ off. I couldn't wait until I could maybe sleep a little, _kthnx_, and figure this stupid thing out. But first, we'd have to get out of here.

"So where, exactly are we?" Ling asked, interrupting my thought train. He stood, stretching and looking around the room, a frown bringing down the corners of his mouth. I could tell that Father's Qi was making him really uncomfortable, but of course Mei had a hard time coming down here with Scar, too…_Where was that tanned bastard, anyways?_

_Back on track, genius, _my conscience whispered. "We're in the belly of the beast, Ling Yao, my man." I answered, my voice echoing oddly in my head. "And we need to get out _pronto_."

_**A/N: Hey there, fans. Ehurhur. 8D;; **_

_**Whatcha doin' with those pitchforks and torches? Looks mighty dangerou-OH DEAR SWEET GOD NO!**_

_***ahem* **_

_**Anyway, I finally reveal the next chapter. Wasn't it worth it? "NO. -_-" **_

…_**shut up, Mokuba. **_

_**Yeah, so craziness aside, there are a lot of references in this one. XD For example, the whole thing with the 'maybe there's a spirit inside' is a giant lump of references to Little Kuriboh's YuGiOh! Abridged. And 'Ling Yao, my man' is from the English dub of Naruto. Deidara says it in place of 'Sasori no danna'. **_

_**ZOMG I CAN BRINGZ PEOPLEZ BACKZ TA LIYEFE! Yes. I'm sorry. But I can't use it willy-nilly and I will be letting you guys know the inner workings of it. Just as soon as Peyton figures it out. Which will take forever because I have a hard time figuring obvious things out IRL. **_

"_**Wait…wait a minute…the V and the W…in the sign for Volkswagen…stands for Volks and Wagen." –Le genius me and my latest discovery. (I'm blonde, okay?)**_

_**Mayhaps thou shalt leave behind thineself a token of gratitude or else of hatred for this poor soul to discover the means about which I may better myself?**_


	20. Shoe is Best Projectile Weapon

~*Edward Elric*~

I couldn't believe it. That_ bastard_.

I clenched my teeth, nearly blinded by my hatred for that homunculi. Not only did he look like Hohenheim, which was bad enough, but now? Now this was personal. He didn't have to kill Ling. I know I'm not some sort of vigilante, but I can't just sit there while innocent people get killed. I glared up at the metal door of my cell. Roy's was next to mine; I'd seen him get dragged off into it by that curvy lady. And Al was in the one in front of me. I would've put a nice little hole in the wall so we could bust out, but for some reason my alchemy didn't work down here.

"Bastard!" That word ripped itself out of my throat, not for the first time and probably not for the last, either, echoing oddly in the corridor. "Hey! You hear me?"

"Brother-" Al began, in the kind of voice that usually means he's going to try and calm me down. He had to know that sometimes, I can't stand for that condescending tone. I was angry, dammit, and he wasn't going to quiet me anytime soon.

"Shut up, Al," I stood up and went to the door, grabbing the bars and looking out. I could see a few dismal little cells, one through which I could see the top of Alphonse's helmet. I don't know where Envy had dragged Peyton, but I guessed it was somewhere down the hall. "Goddammit, homunculus, get your ass out here so I can kick it!"

Speak of the devil and he'll appear. Because as soon as the words left my mouth, I saw Envy strolling down the hall towards me. He threw me a stupid grin that I wanted so badly to knock off his face, and leaned towards my door.

"Hey, look, it's the Fullmetal Pipsqueak," he sneered nastily. "What's going on?"

I would have answered, but was interrupted by what looked like a shoe coming out of nowhere to smack Envy on the side of the head. He barely moved at the impact, though it made a sound that was really loud in the thick silence of this place. It looked so comical, we both were completely stunned for a moment, when he turned his head to the side where it had come from, his eyes narrowed and spelling out MURDER. Who the hell?...

"Hey, look, it's the skirt-wearing, butt-munching, angsty she-homunculus!" A familiar voice called from beyond my sight.

"Peyton?! How the hell-"

Suddenly, Envy was gone. I had to crane my neck just to see him disappear around the corner. Damn, he was fast. Which meant that Peyton was screwed.

"What the hell?! Do you have a death wish or something?!" I shouted incredulously. "He'll-"

"Stop yelling."

I looked back in front of me with even more shock than when I'd seen Envy get royally owned with a tennis shoe. Ling Yao. Old squinty-eyes was just fine, picking the lock to my door. That would've been okay, if it weren't for the fact that _five minutes ago he was dead_.

"Ling?! What-how?!" The door flung open, and I stepped out cautiously, staring at him. There wasn't any wound where he'd been stabbed through his brain, no indication whatsoever that there had even been a moment where he wasn't completely fine.

"I don't know," he replied sharply, turning to Al's door. He'd already released Colonel Douchenozzle, who was glaring down the hall where Envy had run. "But we've got a few minutes before that homunculus comes back this way, and we need to use that time to get to the elevator out of this place."

"Wait, what?" The thought of leaving anyone behind didn't sit right. Especially not someone who not only knew the future, but had helped their prisoners escape. They wouldn't let her live; not after this. "We can't just leave Peyton down here!"

"We're not." Al's door clicked open with finality and Ling went over to the private's door, opening it in a similar manner. "She'll meet us there."

"With an angry homunculus on her tail?" I grimaced pointedly, raising an eyebrow. "When did that sound like a good idea?"

"Do you have a better one?" Ling asked low. When I couldn't reply, he simply turned on his heel and began running down the dark hallway. The private followed, but the colonel and Al hesistated alongside me.

"You can't seriously agree with this!" I looked up at them, gesturing towards the other two.

"Not really, but…" Al paused, before continuing quietly. "We can't do anything if the homunculi catch us again. I trust her, Ed."

"I want to stay as much as you do, Fullmetal," Mustang agreed. "That green-haired one told me everything." His face twisted in intense anger. "All about Hughes. That son of a bitch killed him, and honestly, I've never wanted to set something on fire as much as right now. But your brother's right. We won't do any good stuck down here."

Dammit. I hate it when they're right. I started running after Ling, cursing under my breath. _You'd better get your ass up here, Peyton. I'm not being responsible for your stupid plan not working, and I'm not dealing with Al if you die for real. _

_**A/N: The shortness! IT BUUURNNNSS! **_

_**This is just a bridge, guys. PLOT stuff is happening, and my back hurts, and I should really be working on my NaNoWriMo schtick, and I smell popcorn and I'm hungry, but I felt obliged to finally update. **_

_**I'm sorry. **_

_**School is kicking my poor little ass across the universe. So if you see a blonde chick with glasses flying across the sky, you know why I haven't updated for a while.**_

_**And…I dunno. I've always wanted to throw my shoe at Envy. I almost broke the tv when I saw Deidara die in Naruto. Especially at the hand of that whiny, emo, pms-bitch-on-wheels, pity-me shit-faced….**_

_**At the hands of Sasuke. Yes. Just at the hands of Sasuke. (I've lost half my subs right there.)**_

_**Let's JUST BE FRIENDS so you can CALL ME MAYBE on the TELEPHONE and perhaps review. (I don't even know anymore)**_


	21. A Slight Kink in the Plan

_Shitshitshitshitshitrunrunru nrun_!

I floundered through the maze of tunnels, heading in the general direction of the elevator but partially sure that I was, in fact, going the WRONG WAY. I could hear Envy behind me, gaining fast. It didn't really matter that he was going to catch me, but I had to get him as far away from the others as possible. I was providing them with enough time to get loose and get to the elevator. As well as banking on my watch to let me live once Mr. Miniskirt killed me.

There was another corner up ahead_; if I could just round it, I'd bet that I'd_- I skidded in my tracks, trying to backpedal as quickly as I did when I realized that the one babysitting job I had signed up for was with the biggest family of brats the world had ever seen. It was, with my luck, of course, a_ dead-freaking-end_. I turned to run back down, but only got halfway through the motion before I was flung into the wall sideways, my right side smacking against it. For a minute, I wondered if he'd broken my vision when it turned black and then cleared.

"Have I mentioned how much I hate you?" He hissed, standing over me.

"Have I mentioned how much I can see from down here?" I shot back, trying to get up only to have my face intercepted with his foot kicking it painfully into the concrete. I slid back down, tasting blood.

"You're such a smartass," he mused, picking me up by the collar of my shirt as though I weighed nothing. With a fluid motion, he had me flying into the opposite wall, this time leaving a smear of blood as I went down.

"You're just…gonna bang me into…walls…this entire time?..." I coughed, feeling a spurt of blood gush up from between my chapped lips. "How…creative."

That remark was rewarded with his hand grabbing a fistful of my hair and slamming my head down onto the ground with enough force that I blacked out for a few seconds. I think a few teeth came loose, too. I managed to drag my own hand up to gingerly touch my face, feeling the sticky warmth of blood and the sting of new wounds. I didn't even feel any part that _didn't_ hurt. My nose wasn't broken, though, so that was nice.

"I can use the floor, too," he replied carelessly. "It doesn't matter much to me. But I don't want you to die just yet." He picked me up again, propping me against the wall to cock his head and smile toothily. "I'm having too much fun."

Instantly, his tone set off alarm bells. _He should be angry. He should be shouting and uttering death threats. Why is he so _calm_? _I peeled open one of my eyes to watch him warily. There wasn't any sign of anger in his face. In fact, he looked smug, like he knew something I didn't.

He used his red lighting to turn one of the fingers on his free hand into a knife, dipping it into my cheek and dragging it down to my chin, horrendously slow. My face had been just about numb, so I had no idea that it would hurt so much; the nerve endings screaming in protest. If I'd had a bit more control over my body, I would've bit my lip or looked at him defiantly, but the only thing I could do was hitch my breath a little and watch as my vision darkened again.

"So what do you think we'll do to pass some time here?" he asked conversationally. "Maybe a little bit of fun with knives?" I felt his fist connect hard with my head, snapping it to the side. "Maybe a bit of bone breaking?" He shoved his knee into my gut, making me double over in pain with a loud groan. He let me slide off his leg, watching as I curled up on the pavement in the only defense I had left. I was choking on blood and the tears that threatened to break through the quiet, harshening gasps serving as breath.

Envy crouched down next to me, still talking. "I have to admit, I really love the sound of bones snapping. But I'll be a gentleman and let you decide. What do you suggest, girl?"

I swallowed hard, trying to lend my vocal cords to actual words rather than sobs of pain, which is what I really wanted to do. "What's going…on…?" I slurred, my mostly-broken face turning the words into something that sounded like I was drunk. "Why…"

"I'm having a pretty good day," he continued, "As for 'why', I'll fill you in." He stood, kicking me soundly in the ribs, which gave forth an audible crack. A high-pitched, keening whine burst from my lips and I doubled up further. "You see, we figured that you'd find some sort of way to escape." A vicious stomp was delivered to my knee, breaking it instantly. My mind was blank by then and I could only scream in pain. I'd never broken a bone before, and I was sure that there was no way I ever would, either. _It hurts…_

"While you could pretend to be hero, we'd separate you from the group." He grabbed my arm, twisting it in a way it was not supposed to go. Weakly, I tried to pry his hand off, but he threw it down and stood on it, grinding the fingers into the ground. "And I'd distract you while Lust and Gluttony finish them off."

Somewhere in the process, I'd begun crying, the tears making tracks through the blood. My breaths were now punctuated with pained-animal-sounds and sobs. It hurt so badly, I hoped he would just kill me. _Please, just kill me_, I silently begged with the small shred of my mind that existed.

He got up off my fingers and put his hands on his thin hips appraisingly. I would have curled up, if my body actually wanted to obey my commands, and if I could actually issue said commands. Instead, I just lay there, watching the corner of the wall and watching it swim around with the shadows hovering on the edge of my vision.

"What a nice view," Envy commented dryly. He bent down, picking me up again and leaning close, eye to eye. The movement nudged my broken leg and a shout tore from my throat again. "I love that sound." He tapped the side of my face with a slender hand, as though playfully slapping me. "Well come on, perk up."

I didn't react, and he laughed harshly. "Can't even heal yourself? How pathetic is that?" He let go, my limp body hitting the pavement and sending a jolt of fresh pain through me. The fall had hit me at just the right angle that my watch jangled a little.

"Oh, yeah. I'd forgotten about that," with a deft swipe, he'd grabbed the watch and held it up for me to see. "Did you ever figure out what this was for? I'm guessing something useful. Opening doors, maybe?"

I managed to breathe a little in reply, I think; good old, witty me. Envy gave me another sadistic grin and indifferently nudged the button on the side of the watch downwards, where it sounded another definitive 'click'. Instantly, that electric feeling was back in the air, and I could feel it coursing through me, more warm than painful. From the look on his face, it seemed he could feel it too.

"What the hell?" he snarled, trying to pull his hand back. But, as it had been with Ling, the watch was absolutely stuck. "What-" Suddenly, he went completely still and fell over limply, like a marionette with its strings cut. I stared at him, sucking up breaths like they were precious candies. Or banana pudding, my eternal obsession. God, how I would've killed for a bowl.

I reached forward, focusing all my mind on willing my arm to move towards him and thanking all the gods that he'd fallen in my direction rather than away. I don't think I would've survived that kind of disappointment. I curled my own hand around the watch, coughing and spitting out more blood. With another quick look at him, I dragged it back to rest it beside me, almost like it was a precious stuffed animal. Albeit, one that I was awfully frustrated with.

_Dammit. What did this thing _do_?_

As I watched him, Envy's chest moved, once. Tears again started tracking down my face again and I coughed miserably. I was tired, and hurting like hell, and what I had hoped might have knocked him out for the rest of the time may have just worked in his favor. _Damn, I'm like Bad Luck Brian, aren't I?_ Slowly, groaning and holding his head like he had a massive headache, he sat up. He murmured something uncouth, then turned his head as though he'd just noticed that I was there.

"What-" He jumped, startled, his face clearly reading 'WTF' in all caps. "What are you doing here? How am I here? What the _hell_ is going on?!" He paused for a minute, his surprise turning into an expression that didn't sit right in my gut. "And what's up with your face?" The end of that sentence was punctuated with a snort of some kind or another.

I couldn't reply. But he looked just fine, and if there was a chance I could get rid of the pain, I was taking it; whether I'd figured the stupid thing out or not. Determinedly, I pushed down on the button, the rush of electricity suddenly blinding. When it cleared and I could see again, the agony in my limbs was completely gone.

I got up slowly, reveling in how great 'not-pain' felt. _I'm fine._

"Where's the Fullmetal brat?" Envy spat, reminding me that he still existed.

"Down the hall," I replied as casually as possible, rotating my leg gratefully. "Don't you remember? We took him in a few hours ago; it was priceless. He trusted me like an idiot and just walked right in. Did you have too much to drink or what?"

His face twisted into a grimace. "I don't believe that for a minute."

"Stupid," I huffed. "I joined you guys. Those goody-two shoes are so boring. I even helped you lock up his friends."

"Oh, yeah, then what was up with you being all banged up a minute ago? And what's the deal with the watch?" He pressed, stepping forward menacingly.

"You beat me up. To make it look convincing to the shorty that I was in real trouble, duh. And the watch is what I use to heal myself; Father gave me a Philosopher's Stone."

He glared at me, and for a minute, I seriously wondered whether or not he'd bought it. Then the muscle just above the edge of his lips twitched and I knew that my sorry-ass attempt had failed miserably. Fan-tucking-fastic. Without a word, he reached forward, grabbed my hair, nearly pulling it right out of my scalp, and began to walk down the hall in the direction of the main chamber.

I hissed at the sensation, but didn't bother protesting. Instead, I listened close to see if I could hear the others. If they were really in trouble, then I'd at least be able to hear them shouting, right? Right? Besides, I wasn't getting rid of Envy any time soon, and if he was going to take me in that general direction, it might be helpful. Plus, I was pretty sure that if I tried to fight him off, I'd get a replay of earlier and already I could feel my brain blocking it from memory. My leg still tingled slightly where he'd snapped it, but other than that, I felt fine. Later, I knew, I'd be figuring out this watch thing. Because not knowing was driving me up the wall crazy.

_**A/N: YES, my dear, beloved readers. You DID, in fact, wait that long for this piece of Shickt. **_

_**I apologize. **_

_**Young Reader: "My, the violence! Why, oh, why would you write such a horrible thing?"**_

_**Well, love, it's simple. I have been holding in the brutality. Reigning it in, as it were, trying so very hard not to get too carried away with evilties such as that. This is me finally deciding, 'I write this, I shall put as much violence in it as I so wish, dammit.'**_

_**Envy is OOC. I realize this. But it would've been worse if he'd believed me. Or if he'd suddenly noticed that my hair was the color of wheat basking in the sun and silkier than the richest sultan's turban, and my eyes the color of valentine's chocolates and the leaves of a willow tree during a mid-summer's night, suddenly realizing that the heart that he never knew he'd had was melting in my very prescence, leaning close to whisper softly…**_

"_**Write my character like that again and I'll tear your toenails out once-by-one and jam them into your eye sockets." **_

_**Le Romance~ Iz beautiful, no?**_

_**Wait a minute, did you just read a bunch of chapters in one go? **_

_**Yeah, so?**_

_**Shouldn't you review? **_

_**Screw the author, I have green hair!**_

_**(BTW, check my profile for a poll!)**_


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